£ibrar;p  of  Che  ti>eolo0ical  ^emmarjo 

PRINCETON  •  NEW  JERSEY 
PRESENTED  BY 

The  Estate  of 
Harold  McAfee  Robinson,  D.D. 


UBRARY  OF  PRINCETON 

r 


JUL   1  1   2005 


THEOLOGICAL  SEMINAR 


BX  9178  .W5  S45  1904 
Whitefield,  George, 

1714-1770. 
Selected  sermons  of  George 

Whitefield 


( 


Zbe  TOlotiyg  (great  Setmong. 


WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 


GEORGE    WHITEFIELD. 

After  the  painting  by  Hone. 


SELECTED  SERMONS  OF 

GEORGE  WHITEFIELD 


With  an  Introduction  and 
by  the 

Rev-  A.  R  BUCKLAND,  M.A 

Morning  Preacher  at  the  Foundling  Hospital 


PHILADELPHIA 

THE  UNION   PRESS 

1122  CHESTNUT  STREET 

t904 


CONTENTS 


CHAP.  PAGE 

Introduction  :  Whitefield  as  a  Preacher        vii 

I.  The  Necessity  and  Benefits  of  Religious 

Society  .....  i 

(Eccles.  iv.  9-12.) 

II.  Regeneration     .....        33 
(2  Cor.  V.  17.) 

III.  A  Penitent  Heart  the  Best  New  Year's 

Gift     ......        60 

(Luke  xiii.  3.) 

IV.  The  Almost  Christian  .  .  .94 

(Acts  xxvi.  28.) 

V.  Glorifying  God  in  the  Fire  .  .      120 

(Isa.  xxiv.  15.) 

VI.  Jacob's  Ladder  :  A  Farewell  Sermon  .       142 

(Gen.  xxviii.  12-15.) 


GEORGE  WHITEFIELD 

Born  at  Gloucester,  Dec.  i6,  17 14. 

Entered  as  a  Servitor  at  Pembroke  College,  Oxford,  1732. 

Ordained  Deacon,  1736. 

First  Visit  to  America,  1738. 

Ordained  Priest,  1739. 

First  Open- Air  Sermon  at  Moorfields,  April  29,  1739. 

Second  Visit  to  America,  1739-41. 

Third  Visit  to  America,  1744-48. 

Fourth  Visit  to  America,  1751-52. 

Fifth  Visit  to  America,  1754-55. 

Sixth  Visit  to  America,  1763-65. 

Last  Sermon  in  England  prior  to  last  Embarkation  for  America, 

Sept.  16,  1769. 
Last  Sermon  in  America,  Sept.  29,  1770. 
Died  at  Newburyport,  Mass.,  Sept.  30,  1770. 


^         INTRODUCTION 

WHITEFIELD  AS  A  PREACHER 

It  is  usual  to  say  of  George  Whitefi eld's 
printed  sermons  that  they  do  not  explain  his 
unparalleled  influence  as  a  preacher.  The 
criticism  marks  the  high  expectation  of  the 
reader,  and  warns  us  to  look  beyond  the 
preacher's  words  for  the  secret  of  his  power. 
Other  men  have  outshone  Whitefield  in  force 
of  reasoning,  in  charm  of  diction,  in  all  the 
literary  qualities  of  the  sermon-writer.  Other 
men  have  been  as  sincere  in  their  faith,  as 
eager  in  their  ministry,  as  clear  in  their 
statement  of  the  Gospel  message ;  but  they 
were  not  used,  as  Whitefield  was,  to  change 
the  lives  of  thousands  in  Great  Britain  and 
America.  Remembering  with  reverence  the 
power  which  alone  can  make  preaching 
effective,  it  may  still  be  worth  our  while  to 
see  what  circumstances  and  qualities  offer,  on 


viii  INTRODUCTION 

the  human  side,  an  explanation  of  Whitefield's 
success. 

The  times  were  favourable  to  a  ministry 
delivering  such  a  message  as  that  of  Whitefield 
and  in  such  a  manner.  The  eighteenth  century 
is  often  blamed  beyond  its  deserts.  Whitefield's 
contemporaries,  both  amongst  Churchmen  and 
Nonconformists,  included  men  of  piety  and 
zeal  as  well  as  of  learning  and  orthodoxy. 
The  Church  of  Butler,  of  Seeker,  of  Gibson, 
of  Sherlock  and  of  Waterland  could  not  lack 
worthy  leaders  ;  nor  were  the  ranks  of  the 
clergy  at  large  without  men  of  real  devotion. 
But  the  period  was  one  of  moral  depravity 
and  decaying  faith.  Arianism,  developing 
into  Socinianism,  infected  Church  and  Non- 
conformity alike.  Theological  learning  was 
of  little  repute.  The  Universities  had  sunk 
into  intellectual  obscurity.  The  observance 
of  the  Lord's  Day  and  the  practices  of  religion 
had  decayed.  The  type  of  preaching  most 
common  was  that  of  the  written  sermon  com- 
posed of  cold  and  polished  phrases  which  left 
the  hearer  untouched. 

The  preaching  of  the  men  who  began  the 


INTRODUCTION  ix 

Evangelical  Revival  came  with  the  freshness 
of  a  new  message,  and  the  very  message  which 
the  times  so  sorely  needed.  If  they  reasoned, 
in  terms  that  were  sometimes  lurid,  of  right- 
eousness, temperance  and  judgment  to  come, 
they  declared  with  no  less  conviction  the  love 
of  God  and  the  forgiveness  of  sins  through 
the  finished  work  of  Jesus  Christ.  If  White- 
field's  sermons  are  read  in  the  light  of  the 
times  in  which  they  were  delivered,  their 
influence  will  seem  less  surprising  than  the 
absence  of  some  qualities  that  make  for  great- 
ness may  suggest. 

Regard  must  be  had  also  to  the  circumstances 
under  which  Whitefield  often  preached.  He 
began  his  ministry  at  Gloucester  in  the  church 
which  still  stands  in  the  same  street  with  the 
inn  (now  the  Bell  Hotel)  at  which  he  was 
born.  His  early  fame  in  London,  won  as  a 
young  deacon  ordained  below  the  canonical 
age,  came  from  sermons  preached  in  churches. 
But  when  pulpits  were  closed  against  him,  and 
when  churches  were  all  too  small  for  the 
congregations  which  gathered  to  hear  him,  he 
began  to  preach  in  the  open  air.     Vast  crowds 


X  INTRODUCTION 

gathered  around  him  at  Moorfields,  even  when 
violence  and  ribaldry  did  their  worst  to  drown 
his  voice.^  At  Kingswood,  near  Bristol,  an 
audience  of  200  colliers  grew  day  by  day 
till  20,000  hearers  were  assembled.  Once, 
in  America,  he  accompanied  a  repentant 
criminal  to  the  gallows,  and  preached,  standing 
upon  the  coffin  in  the  execution  cart.  Amidst 
the  acute  terror  produced  by  the  earthquake 
of  1775  he  preached  at  midnight  to  a  vast 
assembly  in  Hyde  Park.  His  last  address  was 
delivered  at  night  on  the  staircase  of  the  house 
in  which  he  died,  whilst  the  bedroom  candle 
burned  to  the  socket  in  his  hand.  Whitefield 
has  told  us,  in  the  preface  to  his  edition  of  a 
sermon  by  Foxe,  the  martyrologist,  on  what 
authority  he  acted.  '  Our  Lord  has  given  us 
a  universal  commission  :  "  Go  ye,  and  preach 
the  Gospel  to  every  creature."  When  thrust 
out  of  the  synagogues,  a  mountain,  a  ship 
were  His  pulpit,  and  the  heavens  were  His 
sounding-board.  Thus  Latimer,  Cranmer, 
Ridley,    and     Mr    John     Foxe,    the    famous 

^  See  Tyerman's  Lt/e  of  Whitefield,  i.  554-57,  for  WTiitefield's 
account  of  his  Moorfields  experiences  in  1742. 


INTRODUCTION  xi 

martyrologist,  preached.  And  who  needs  to  be 
ashamed  of  such  unexceptionable  examples  ?  '  ^ 
Gpen-sJft"  preaching  has  long  been  too  familiar 
to  excite  the  interest  it  did  in  the  days  of 
Whitefield  and  John  Wesley  ;  but  never  since 
their  days  has  it  been  so  powerful  an 
evangelistic  agent. 

But  we  shall  find  a  further  explanation  of 
Whitefield's  success,  on  the  human  side,  in  the 
manner  and  method  of  the  preacher.  His 
voice  was  an  organ  of  singular  power  and 
beauty.  Franklin,  by  experiment,  reached  the 
conclusion  that  Whitefield  could  be  heard  in 
the  open  air  by  30,000  persons.  A  born 
orator,  Whitefield  had  even  at  school  been 
chosen  for  his  '  good  elocution  and  memory ' 
to  speak  before  the  Corporation  at  their 
annual  inspection.  He  recalls,  as  a  young 
preacher,  the  advantage  he  derived  from  this 
early  training  ;  he  commended  the  study  of 
oratory  to  others  ;  and  he  deplored  the  absence 
of  any  such  training  amongst  candidates  for 
the  ministry  of  the  Church.  His  own  oratory 
was  dramatic  to  the  last  degree.     Unsupported 

^  Quoted  by  Tyerman,  ii.  418. 


xii  INTRODUCTION 

by  transparent  sincerity  and  a  passionate 
love  of  souls,  it  would  have  been  intolerable. 
Employed  by  Whitefield,  it  appeared  beyond 
criticism.  Some  of  his  sermons  were,  in 
substance,  delivered  again  and  again,  revised 
with  scrupulous  care  as  the  test  of  delivery 
disclosed  weaknesses  or  new  opportunities, 
and,  apparently,  gaining  rather  than  losing  in 
power  from  their  repetition.  Franklin  says 
that  such  sermons  gave  *  a  pleasure  of  much 
the  same  kind  with  that  received  from  an 
excellent  piece  of  music'  But,  after  all,  far 
more  than  justness  of  emphasis,  and  musical 
cadences,  and  appropriate  modulations  of  the 
voice,  there  appealed  to  hearers  the  zeal  of  the 
man.  There  was  conviction  in  every  sentence. 
Whitefield  preached  not  to  charm  the  ear,  but 
to  win  souls.  His  hearers  knew  it,  and  felt 
the  urgency  of  his  appeal.  Mr  Lecky  with 
justice  observes  that  '  of  no  other  preacher 
could  it  be  more  truly  said  that  he  preached 
as  a  dying  man  to  dying  men.'  ^ 

This  combination  of  oratorical  power,  with  a 
passionate  yearning  for  souls,  would  of  itself 

^  England  in  the  Eighteenth  Century^  II.  ix.  569. 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

explaf!!  the  immediate  impression  created  by 
Whitefield's  ministry.  Before  he  had  been 
many  months  ordained  London  crowded  to 
hear  him.  *  One  might,  as  it  were,  walk  upon 
the  people's  heads.  Thousands  went  away 
from  the  largest  churches  for  want  of  room.  .  .  . 
The  people  were  all  attentive,  as  hearing  for 
eternity.'  So  he  wrote  himself,  and  without 
exaggeration.  This  early  interest  was  sus- 
tained throughout  Whitefield's  career.  The 
*  common  people  heard  him,'  as  they  had 
heard  his  Master,  '  gladly ' ;  but  more  fasti- 
dious judges  also  bore  witness  to  his  power. 
At  the  Countess  of  Huntingdon's  house  at 
Chelsea  Bolingbroke  was  amongst  his  hearers, 
and  '  was  much  moved  at  the  discourse.'  ^ 
David  Garrick  is  reported  to  have  exclaimed, 
'  I  would  give  a  hundred  guineas  if  I  could 
say  "  Oh ! "  like  Mr  Whitefield.'  2  David 
Hume  bore  even  more  striking  testimony  ^ : — 
'Towards  the  close  of  one  of  Whitefield's 
sermons  at  Edinburgh,  after  a  solemn  pause, 
the  preacher  broke  the  silence  with  this  appeal 

^  Sou  they 's  Life  of  Wesley,  chap.  xxv.  ^  Tyerman,  ii.  355. 

'  Quoted  in  J.  P.  Gledstone's  Life  of  Whitefield,  pp.  378-9. 


xiv  INTRODUCTION 

to  his  audience  :  "  The  attendant  angel  is  just 
about  to  leave  this  threshold,  and  ascend  to 
heaven ;  and  shall  he  ascend  and  not  bear 
with  him  the  news  of  one  sinner,  among  all 
this  multitude  reclaimed  from  the  error  of  his 
ways  ? "  To  give  the  greater  effect  to  this 
appeal,  the  preacher  stamped  with  his  foot, 
lifted  up  his  hands  and  eyes  to  heaven,  and 
cried  aloud,  "  Stop,  Gabriel !  stop,  Gabriel !  stop 
ere  you  enter  the  sacred  portals,  and  yet  carry 
with  you  the  news  of  one  sinner  converted  to 
God  !  "  Hume  said  that  this  burst  of  oratory 
was  accompanied  with  such  animated,  yet 
natural,  action,  that  it  surpassed  anything  he 
ever  saw  or  heard  in  any  other  preacher.' 

Not  less  decisive  is  the  evidence  of  Ben- 
jamin Franklin.  He  disapproved  of  White- 
field's  design  to  build  an  orphan  home  in 
Georgia.  But — to  take  up  his  own  narrative 
— '  I  happened,  soon  after,  to  attend  one  of 
his  sermons,  in  the  course  of  which  I  perceived 
he  intended  to  finish  with  a  collection,  and  I 
silently  resolved  he  should  get  nothing  from 
me.  I  had  in  my  pocket  a  handful  of  copper 
money,   three   or  four   silver   dollars,  and    five 


INTRODUCTION  xv 

pistoles  in  gold.  As  he  proceeded,  I  began 
to  soften,  and  concluded  to  give  the  copper. 
Another  stroke  of  his  oratory  made  me 
ashamed  of  that,  and  determined  me  to  give 
the  silver ;  and  he  finished  so  admirably,  that  I 
emptied  my  pocket  wholly  into  the  collector's 
dish,  gold  and  all  !  At  this  sermon  there  was 
also  one  of  our  club,  who,  being  of  my  senti- 
ments respecting  the  building  in  Georgia,  and 
suspecting  a  collection  might  be  intended,  had, 
by  precaution,  emptied  his  pockets  before  he 
came  from  home.  Towards  the  conclusion  of 
the  discourse,  however,  he  felt  a  strong  inclina- 
tion to  give,  and  applied  to  a  neighbour  who 
stood  near  him  to  lend  him  some  money  for 
the  purpose.  The  request  was  made  to  perhaps 
the  only  man  in  the  company  who  was  not 
affected  by  the  preacher.  His  answer  was, 
"At  any  other  time,  friend  Hopkinson,  I 
would  lend  thee  freely  ;  but  not  now,  for  thee 
seems  to  me  to  be  out  of  thy  right  senses." '  ^ 

Perhaps  no  one  was  ever  more  dramatic  in 
the  pulpit  than  Whitefield.  '  In  some  such 
manner,'   said    the    Rev.   Joseph    Smith,    in    a 

^  Gillies'  Life  of  Whitefield,  p.  302. 


xvi  INTRODUCTION 

sermon  preached  at  Charlestown  in  1740, 'I 
have  been  tempted  to  conceive  of  a  seraph,  were 
he  sent  down  to  preach  among  us,  and  to  tell 
us  what  things  he  had  seen  and  heard  above.'  ^ 
He  described  the  Last  Judgment  in  the  terms 
of  an  actor  in  it.  His  picture  of  a  ship  over- 
taken by  a  tempest  at  sea  worked  up  to 
this  climax  :  '  Our  masts  are  gone  !  The  ship 
is  on  her  beam-ends  !  What  next  ? '  '  The 
long-boat !  Take  to  the  long-boat ! '  shouted 
his  audience  of  sailors.  He  illustrated  the 
perils  of  sinners  by  the  picture  of  a  blind  man, 
deserted  by  his  dog,  stumbling  feebly  over  a 
desolate  moor,  and  at  last  hovering  upon  the 
very  edge  of  a  precipice.  *  Good  God  !  He 
is  gone  ! '  exclaimed  Lord  Chesterfield. 

Chesterfield,  Hume,  Bolingbroke,  Garrick — 
these  are  strange  witnesses  to  a  preacher's 
power.  Let  us  end  by  quoting  one  of  another 
order,  John  Newton  :  '  I  bless  God  that  I  have 
lived  in  his  time.  Many  were  the  winter 
mornings  I  have  got  up  at  four,  to  attend  his 
Tabernacle  services  at  five.  I  have  seen  Moor- 
fields  as  full  of  lanterns  at  these  times  as   I 

^  Sermons  on  Important  Subjects  (Ed.  1828),  p.  796. 


INTRODUCTION  xvii 

suppose  the  Haymarket  is  full  of  flambeaux  on 
an  opera  night.  As  a  preacher,  if  any  man 
were  to  ask  me  who  was  the  second  I  ever  had 
heard,  I  should  be  at  some  loss  ;  but  in  regard 
to  the  first,  Mr  Whitefield  exceeds  so  far  every 
other  of  my  time,  that  I  should  be  at  none.' 

*  Whitefield,'  says  Canon  Overton,^  '  was  a 
preacher  and  nothing  more.'  Mr  Lecky  puts 
the  case  with  a  greater  fairness  when  he  says  ^ 
that  '  the  position  of  a  roving  evangelist  was  of 
all  others  that  for  which  both  the  genius  and 
the  disposition  of  Whitefield  were  most  suited.' 
To  be  such  a  preacher  '  and  nothing  more ' 
might  satisfy  the  ambition  of  any  man. 

The  text  of  the  following  sermons  is,  with 
some  slight  omissions  and  the  correction  of 
one  or  two  obvious  errors,  that  of  the  Sermons 
on  Important  Subjects,  published  by  Henry 
Fisher,  Son,  &  P.  Jackson  in  1828. 

A.    R.    BUCKLAND. 

^  The  Evangelical  Revival,  p.  32. 

2  England  in  the  Eighteenth  Century,  II.  ix.  567. 


I 


THE    NECESSITY   AND    BENEFITS    OF 
RELIGIOUS    SOCIETY  1 

*  Two  are  better  than  one ;  because  they  have  a  good  reward 
for  their  labour.  For  if  they  fall,  the  one  will  lift  up  his 
fellow :  but  woe  to  him  that  is  alone  when  he  falleth  ;  for 
he  hath  not  another  to  help  him  up.  Again,  if  two  lie  together, 
then  they  have  heat :  but  how  can  one  be  warm  alone  ?  And 
if  one  prevail  against  him,  two  shall  withstand  him ;  and  a 
threefold  cord  is  not  quickly  broken.' — Eccles.  iv.  9-12. 

Among  the  many  reasons  assignable  for  the 
sad  decay  of  true  Christianity,  perhaps  the 
neglecting  to  assemble  ourselves   together,  in 

^  Preached  in  the  Church  of  St  Mary  de  Crypt,  Gloucester — 
the  church  in  which  Whitefield  was  baptised,  where  he  had 
first  received  the  Holy  Communion,  and  contiguous  then  to  the 
school  in  which  he  had  been  educated — on  the  afternoon  of 
June  27,  1736.  Mr  Tyerman  (i.  51)  thinks  it  'probably  the 
same  sermon  he  afterwards  preached  before  the  Religious 
Societies,  at  one  of  their  quarterly  meetings,  in  Bow  Church, 
London. '  A  large  crowd,  drawn  together,  Whitefield  tells  us, 
by  curiosity,  filled  the  church  at  Gloucester.  The  results  of  the 
sermon  were  remarkable  :  '  A  few  mocked,  but  most  for  the 
present  seemed  struck  ;  and  I  have  since  heard  that  a  complaint 
has  been  made  to  the  Bishop  that  I  drove  fifteen  mad.'  On  the 
following  day  the  Bishop  sent  the  young  preacher  five  guineas 
—  'a  great  supply  for  one  who  had  not  a  guinea  in  the  world.' 


2  WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

religious  societies,  may  not  be  one  of  the  least. 
That  I  may  therefore  do  my  endeavour  to- 
wards promoting  so  excellent  a  means  of 
piety,  I  have  selected  a  passage  of  Scripture, 
drawn  from  the  experiences  of  the  wisest  of 
men,  which  being  a  little  enlarged  on,  and 
illustrated,  will  fully  answer  my  present  design  ; 
being  to  show,  in  the  best  manner  I  can,  the 
necessity  and  benefits  of  society  in  general, 
and  of  religious  society  in  particular. 

'  Two  are  better  than  one,'  etc. 

From  which  words  I  shall  take  occasion  to 
prove. 

Firsts  The  truth  of  the  wise  man's  assertion, 
*  Two  are  better  than  one,'  and  that  in  reference 
to  society  in  general,  and  religious  society  in 
particular. 

Secondly^  To  assign  some  reasons  why  two 
are  better  than  one,  especially  as  to  the  last 
particular,  i.  Because  men  can  raise  up  one 
another  when  they  chance  to  slip  :  '  For  if 
they  fall,  the  one  will  lift  up  his  fellow.' 
2.  Because  they  can  impart  heat  to  each 
other  :  '  Again,  if  two  lie  together,  then  they 
have    heat ;     but     how    can     one    be    warm 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  3 

alone?*  3.  Because  they  can  secure  each 
other  from  those  that  do  oppose  them  :  '  And 
if  one  prevail  against  him,  two  shall  withstand 
him ;  and  a  threefold  cord  is  not  quickly 
broken.'     From  hence, 

Thirdly,  I  shall  take  occasion  to  show,  the 
duty  incumbent  on  every  member  of  a  religious 
society.^ 

And  Fourthly,  I  shall  draw  an  inference  or 
two  from  what  may  be  said  ;  and  then  conclude 
with  a  word  or  two  of  exhortation. 

I.  I  am  to  prove  the  truth  of  the  wise 
man's  assertion,  that,  '  two  are  better  than  one, 
and  that  in  reference  to  society  in  general,  and 
religious  societies  in  particular.' 

And  how  can  this  be  done  better,  than  by 
showing  that  it  is  absolutely  necessary  for  the 
welfare  both  of  the  bodies  and  souls  of  men  ? 
Indeed,  if  we  look  upon  man  as  he  came  out 
of  the  hands  of  his  Maker,  we  imagine  him  to 
be  perfect,  entire,  lacking  nothing.     But  God, 

^  Religious  Societies  for  mutual  edification  and  for  co-opera- 
tion in  good  works,  originated  amidst  the  profligacy  of  the 
Restoration.  They  increased  in  number  and  influence  after  the 
Revolution  of  1688.  In  17 10  there  were  forty-two  in  London 
and  Westminster  alone.  They  flourished  also  at  Oxford, 
Nottingham,  Bristol,  Gloucester,  and  elsewhere. 


4         WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

whose  thoughts  are  not  as  our  thoughts,  saw 
something  still  wanting  to  make  Adam  happy. 
And  what  was  that  ?  Why,  an  help  meet  for 
him.  For  thus  speaketh  the  Scripture  :  *  And 
the  Lord  God  said.  It  is  not  good  that  the  man 
should  be  alone,  I  will  make  an  help  meet  for 
him.' 

Observe,  God  said,  '  It  is  not  good,'  thereby 
implying  that  the  creation  would  have  been 
imperfect  in  some  sort,  unless  an  help  was 
found  out  meet  for  Adam.  And  if  this  were 
the  case  of  man  before  the  fall ;  if  a  help  was 
meet  for  him  in  a  state  of  perfection  ;  surely 
since  the  fall,  when  we  come  naked  and 
helpless  out  of  our  mother's  womb,  when  our 
wants  increase  with  our  years,  and  we  can 
scarcely  subsist  a  day  without  the  mutual 
assistance  of  each  other,  well  may  we  say,  '  It 
is  not  good  for  man  to  be  alone.' 

Society,  then,  we  see,  is  absolutely  necessary 
in  respect  to  our  bodily  and  personal  wants. 
If  we  carry  our  views  farther,  and  consider 
mankind  as  divided  into  different  cities, 
countries,  and  nations,  the  necessity  of  it  will 
appear  yet  more  evident.      For  how  can  com- 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  5 

munities  be  kept  up,  or  commerce  carried  on, 
without  society?  Certainly  not  at  all,  since 
Providence  seems  wisely  to  have  assigned  a 
particular  product  to  almost  each  particular 
country,  on  purpose,  as  it  were,  to  oblige  us  to 
be  social ;  and  hath  so  admirably  mingled  the 
parts  of  the  whole  body  of  mankind  together, 
*  that  the  eye  cannot  say  to  the  hand,  I  have  no 
need  of  thee  ;  nor  again,  the  hand  to  the  foot, 
I  have  no  need  of  thee.' 

Many  other  instances  might  be  given  of  the 
necessity  of  society,  in  reference  to  our  bodily, 
personal,  and  national  wants.  But  what  are  all 
these  when  weighed  in  the  balance  of  the  sanc- 
tuary, in  comparison  of  the  infinite  greater 
need  of  it  with  respect  to  the  soul  ?  It  was 
chiefly  in  regard  to  this  better  part,  no  doubt, 
that  God  said,  *  It  is  not  good  for  the  man  to 
be  alone.'  For,  let  us  suppose  Adam  to  be  as 
happy  as  may  be,  placed  as  the  Lord  of  the 
creation  in  the  paradise  of  God,  and  spending 
all  his  hours  in  adoring  and  praising  the  blessed 
Author  of  his  being ;  yet  as  his  soul  was  the 
very  copy  of  the  divine  nature,  whose  peculiar 
property  it   is   to  be   communicative,  without 


6  WHITEFIELD^S  SERMONS 

the  divine  all-sufficiency  he  could  not  be  com- 
pletely happy,  because  he  was  alone,  and 
incommunicative,  nor  even  content  in  paradise, 
for  want  of  a  partner  in  his  joys.  God  knew 
this,  and  therefore  said,  '  It  is  not  good  that 
the  man  shall  be  alone,  I  will  make  a  help 
meet  for  him.'  And  though  this  proved  a  fatal 
means  of  his  falling,  yet  that  was  not  owing  to 
any  natural  consequence  of  society  ;  but  partly 
to  that  cursed  apostate,  who  craftily  lies  in  wait 
to  deceive  ;  partly  to  Adam's  own  folly,  in  rather 
choosing  to  be  miserable  with  one  he  loved, 
than  trust  in  God  to  raise  him  up  another 
spouse. 

If  we  reflect,  indeed,  on  that  familiar 
intercourse  our  first  parent  could  carry  on 
with  heaven  in  a  state  of  innocence,  we  shall 
be  apt  to  think  he  had  as  little  need  of  society, 
as  to  his  soul,  as  before  we  supposed  him  to 
have  in  respect  to  his  body.  But  yet,  as  God 
and  the  holy  angels  were  so  far  above  him  on 
the  one  hand,  and  the  beasts  so  far  beneath 
him  on  the  other,  there  was  nothing  like 
having  one  to  converse  with,  who  was  '  bone  of 
his  bone,  and  flesh  of  his  flesh.' 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  7 

Man,  then,  could  not  be  fully  happy,  we  see, 
even  in  paradise,  without  a  companion  of  his 
own  species  ;  much  less  now  he  is  driven  out. 
For,  let  us  view  him  a  little  in  his  natural 
estate  now,  since  the  fall,  as  'having  his 
understanding  darkened,  his  mind  alienated 
from  the  life  of  God  ;  as  no  more  able  to  see 
his  way  wherein  he  should  go,  than  a  blind 
man  to  describe  the  sun  ;  that  notwithstanding 
this,  he  must  receive  his  sight  ere  he  can  see 
God  :  and  that  if  he  never  sees  him,  he  never 
can  be  happy.  Let  us  view  him  in  this  light 
(or  rather  this  darkness),  and  deny  the 
necessity  of  society  if  we  can.  A  divine 
revelation  we  find  is  absolutely  necessary,  we 
being  by  nature  as  unable  to  know  as  we  are 
to  do  our  duty.  And  how  shall  we  learn, 
except  one  teach  us  ?  But  were  God  to  do 
this  Himself,  how  should  we,  but  with  Moses, 
exceedingly  quake  and  fear  ?  Nor  would  the 
ministry  of  angels  in  this  affair  be  without  too 
much  terror.  It  is  necessary  therefore  (at 
least  God's  dealing  with  us  has  showed  it  to 
be  so)  that  we  should  be  drawn  with  the  cords 
of  a  man  ;  and  that  a  divine  revelation  being 


8  WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

granted,  we  should  use  one  another's  assistance, 
under  God,  to  instruct  each  other  in  the 
knowledge,  and  to  exhort  one  another  to  the 
practice,  of  those  things  which  belong  to  our 
everlasting  peace.  This  is  undoubtedly  the 
great  end  of  society  intended  by  God  since 
the  fall,  and  a  strong  argument  it  is  why  '  two 
are  better  than  one,'  and  why  we  should  '  not 
forsake  the  assembling  ourselves  together.' 

But  farther,  let  us  consider  ourselves  as 
Christians,  as  having  this  natural  veil,  in  some 
measure,  taken  off  from  our  eyes,  by  the 
assistance  of  God's  Holy  Spirit,  and  so 
enabled  to  see  what  He  requires  of  us.  Let 
us  suppose  ourselves  in  some  degree  to  have 
tasted  the  good  word  of  life,  and  to  have  felt 
the  powers  of  the  world  to  come,  influencing 
and  moulding  our  souls  into  a  religious  frame  ; 
to  be  fully  and  heartily  convinced  that  we  are 
soldiers  listed  under  the  banner  of  Christ,  and 
to  have  proclaimed  open  war,  at  our  baptism, 
against  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil  ; 
and  have,  perhaps,  frequently  renewed  our 
obligations  so  to  do  by  partaking  of  the 
Lord's  Supper  ;  that  we  are  surrounded  with 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  9 

millions  of  foes  without,  and  infested  with  a 
legion  of  enemies  within  ;  that  we  are  com- 
manded to  shine  as  lights  in  the  world,  in 
the  midst  of  a  crooked  and  perverse  generation  ; 
that  we  are  travelling  to  a  long  eternity, 
and  need  all  imaginable  helps  to  show,  and 
encourage  us  in,  our  way  thither.  Let  us,  I 
say,  reflect  on  all  this,  and  then  how  shall 
each  of  us  cry  out.  Brethren,  what  a  necessary 
thing  it  is  to  meet  together  in  religious 
societies  ! 

The  primitive  Christians  were  fully  sensible 
of  this,  and  therefore  we  find  them  continually 
keeping  up  communion  with  each  other  :  for 
what  says  the  Scripture  ?  '  They  continued 
steadfastly  in  the  apostles'  doctrine  and 
fellowship,'  Acts  ii.  42.  Peter  and  John 
were  no  sooner  dismissed  by  the  great 
council,  than  they  haste  away  to  their  com- 
panions. *  And  being  let  go,  they  went  to 
their  own  company,  and  reported  all  that  the 
chief  priests  and  elders  had  said  unto  them,' 
Acts  iv.  23.  Paul,  as  soon  as  converted, 
tarried  three  days  with  the  disciples  that 
were     at     Damuscus,     Acts     ix.     19.       And 


lo        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Peter  afterwards,  when  released  from  prison, 
immediately  goes  to  the  house  of  Mary, 
where  there  were  great  multitudes  assembled, 
praying,  Acts  xii.  1 2.  And  it  is  reported 
of  the  Christians  in  after-ages,  that  they 
used  to  assemble  together  before  daylight,  to 
sing  a  psalm  to  Christ  as  God.  So  precious 
was  the  cofnmunion  of  saints  in  those  days. 

If  it  be  asked  what  advantages  we  shall 
reap  from  such  a  procedure  now  ?  I  answer, 
much  every  way.  '  Two  are  better  than  one  ; 
because  they  have  a  good  reward  for  their 
labour.  For  if  they  fall,  the  one  will  lift  up 
his  fellow :  but  woe  to  him  that  is  alone 
when  he  falleth  ;  for  he  hath  not  another  to 
help  him  up.  Again,  if  two  lie  together,  then 
they  have  heat :  but  how  can  one  be  warm 
alone  ?  And  if  one  prevail  against  him,  two 
shall  withstand  him  ;  and  a  threefold  cord  is 
not  quickly  broken.' 

II.  Which  directly  leads  me  to  my  second 
general  head,  under  which  I  was  to  assign 
some  reasons  why  '  two  are  better  than  one,' 
especially  in  religious  society. 

I.    A   man  in  his  present   condition  cannot 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  ii 

always  stand  upright,  but  by  reason  of  the 
frailty  of  his  nature  cannot  but  fall.  One 
eminent  reason  why  two  are  better  than  one,  or, 
in  other  words,  one  great  advantage  of  religious 
society,  is,  *  that  when  they  fall,  the  one  will 
lift  up  his  fellow.' 

And  an  excellent  reason  this,  indeed  !  For 
alas,  when  we  reflect  how  prone  we  are  to  be 
drawn  into  error  in  our  judgments,  and  into 
vice  in  our  practice  ;  and  how  unable,  at  least 
how  very  unwilling,  to  espy  or  correct  our 
own  miscarriages  ;  when  we  consider  how 
apt  the  world  is  to  flatter  us  in  our  faults, 
and  how  few  there  are  so  kind  as  to  tell  us 
the  truth :  what  an  inestimable  privilege 
must  it  be  to  have  a  set  of  true,  judicious, 
hearty  friends  about  us,  continually  watching 
over  our  souls,  to  inform  us  where  we  have 
fallen,  and  to  warn  us  that  we  fall  not  again 
for  the  future  !  Surely  it  is  such  a  privilege 
(to  use  the  words  of  an  eminent  Christian), 
we  shall  never  know  the  value  thereof  till  we 
come  to  glory. 

But  this  is  not  all ;  for  supposing  that  we 
could    always    stand    upright,    yet    whosoever 


12        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

reflects  on  the  difficulties  of  religion  in  general, 
and  his  own  propensity  to  lukewarmness  and 
indifference  in  particular,  will  find  that  he  must 
be  zealous  as  well  as  steady,  if  ever  he  expects 
to  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Here  then 
the  wise  man  points  out  to  us  another  excellent 
reason  why  two  are  better  than  one.  '  Again, 
if  two  lie  together,  then  they  have  heat ;  but 
how  can  one  be  warm  alone  ?  '  Which  was  the 
next  thing  to  be  considered. 

2.  A  second  reason  why  two  are  better  than 
one,  is,  because  they  can  impart  heat  to  each 
other. 

It  is  an  observation  no  less  true  than 
common,  that  kindled  coals  if  placed  asunder 
soon  go  out,  but  if  heaped  together  quicken 
and  enliven  each  other,  and  afford  a  lasting 
heat.  The  same  will  hold  good  in  the  case 
now  before  us.  If  Christians  kindled  by  the 
grace  of  God  unite,  they  will  quicken  and 
enliven  each  other  ;  but  if  they  separate  and 
keep  asunder,  no  marvel  if  they  soon  grow 
cool  or  tepid.  If  two  or  three  meet  together 
in  Christ's  name,  they  will  have  heat :  but  how 
can  one  be  warm  alone  ? 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  13 

Observe,  '  How  can  one  be  warm  alone  ? ' 
The  wise  man's  expressing  himself  by  way  of 
question  implies  an  impossibility,  at  least  a 
very  great  difficulty,  to  be  warm  in  religion 
without  company,  where  it  may  be  had. 
Behold  here,  then,  another  excellent  benefit 
flowing  from  religious  society  ;  it  will  keep  us 
zealous,  as  well  as  steady,  in  the  ways  of 
godliness. 

But  to  illustrate  this  a  little  farther  by  a 
comparison  or  two.  Let  us  look  upon  our- 
selves (as  was  above  hinted)  as  soldiers  listed 
under  Christ's  banner ;  as  going  out  with  *  ten 
thousand,  to  meet  one  that  cometh  against  us 
with  twenty  thousand ' ;  as  persons  that  are  to 
'  wrestle  not  only  with  flesh  and  blood,  but 
against  principalities,  against  powers,  and 
spiritual  wickednesses  in  high  places.'  And 
then  tell  me,  all  ye  that  fear  God,  if  it  be 
not  an  invaluable  privilege  to  have  a  com- 
pany of  fellow-soldiers  continually  about  us, 
animating  and  exhorting  each  other  to  stand 
our  ground,  to  keep  our  ranks,  and  manfully 
to  follow  the  Captain  of  our  salvation,  though 
it  be  through  a  sea  of  blood  ? 


14        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Let  us  consider  ourselves  in  another  view, 
before  mentioned,  as  persons  travelling  to  a 
long  eternity ;  as  rescued  by  the  free  grace 
of  God,  in  some  measure,  from  our  natural 
Egyptian  bondage,  and  marching  under  the 
conduct  of  our  spiritual  Joshua,  through  the 
wilderness  of  this  world,  to  the  land  of  our 
heavenly  Canaan.  Let  us  farther  reflect  how 
apt  we  are  to  startle  at  every  difficulty ;  to 
cry,  '  There  are  lions  !  There  are  lions  in  the 
way !  There  are  the  sons  of  Anak '  to  be 
grappled  with,  ere  we  can  possess  the  promised 
land  !  How  prone  we  are,  with  Lot's  wife,  to 
look  wishfully  back  on  our  spiritual  Sodom,  or, 
with  the  foolish  Israelites,  to  long  again  for  the 
flesh-pots  of  Egypt ;  and  to  return  to  our 
former  natural  state  of  bondage  and  slavery. 
Consider  this,  my  brethren,  and  see  what  a 
blessed  privilege  it  will  be  to  have  a  set  of 
Israelites  indeed  about  us,  always  reminding 
us  of  the  folly  of  any  such  cowardly  design, 
and  of  the  intolerable  misery  we  shall  run  into, 
if  we  fall  in  the  least  short  of  the  promised 
land. 

More  might  be  said  on  this  particular,  did 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  15 

not  the  limits  of  a  discourse  of  this  nature 
oblige  me  to  hasten, 

3.  To  give  a  third  reason,  mentioned  by  the 
wise  man  in  the  text,  why  two  are  better  than 
one  ;  because  they  can  secure  each  other  from 
enemies  without :  '  And  if  one  prevail  against 
him,  yet  two  shall  withstand  him  :  and  a  three- 
fold cord  is  not  quickly  broken.' 

Hitherto  we  have  considered  the  advantages 
of  religious  societies,  as  a  great  preservative 
against  falling  (at  least  dangerously  falling) 
into  sin  and  lukewarmness,  and  that  too  from 
our  own  corruptions.  But  what  says  the  wise 
son  of  Sirach  ?  '  My  son,  when  thou  goest  to 
serve  the  Lord,  prepare  thy  soul  for  temptation  :' 
and  that  not  only  from  inward,  but  outward 
foes  ;  particularly  from  those  two  grand  adver- 
saries, the  world  and  the  devil  :  for  no  sooner 
will  thine  eye  be  bent  heavenward,  but  the 
former  will  be  immediately  diverting  it  another 
way,  telling  thee  thou  needest  not  be  singular 
in  order  to  be  religious ;  that  you  may  be  a 
Christian  without  going  so  much  out  of  the 
common  road. 

Nor  will  the  devil  be  wanting  in  his  artful 
c 


1 6        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

insinuations  or  impious  suggestions,  to  divert 
or  terrify  thee  from  pressing  forwards,  *  that 
thou  mayest  lay  hold  on  the  crown  of  life.' 
And  if  he  cannot  prevail  this  way,  he  will  try 
another  :  and,  in  order  to  make  his  temptation 
the  more  undiscerned,  but  withal  more  success- 
ful, he  will  employ  perhaps  some  of  thy  nearest 
relatives  or  most  powerful  friends  (as  he  set 
Peter  on  our  blessed  Master),  who  will  always 
be  bidding  thee  to  spare  thyself;  telling  thee 
thou  needest  not  to  take  so  much  pains  ;  that 
it  is  not  so  difficult  a  matter  to  get  to  heaven 
as  some  people  would  make  of  it,  nor  the  way 
so  narrow  as  others  imagine  it  to  be. 

But  see  here  the  advantage  of  religious 
company  ;  for  supposing  thou  findest  thyself 
thus  surrounded  on  every  side,  and  unable 
to  withstand  such  horrid  (though  seemingly 
friendly)  counsels,  haste  away  to  thy  com- 
panions, and  they  will  teach  thee  a  truer  and 
better  lesson  ;  they  will  tell  thee  that  thou 
must  be  singular,  if  thou  wilt  be  religious  ;  and 
that  it  is  as  impossible  for  a  Christian,  as  for  a 
city  set  upon  a  hill,  to  be  hidden  ;  that  if  thou 
wilt  be  an  almost  Christian  (and  as  good  be 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  17 

none  at  all)  thou  mayest  live  in  the  same  idle, 
indifferent  manner  as  thou  seest  most  other 
people  do  ;  but  if  thou  wilt  be  not  only  almost, 
but  altogether  a  Christian,  they  will  inform  thee 
thou  must  go  a  great  deal  farther ;  that  thou 
must  not  only  faintly  seek,  but  '  earnestly  strive 
to  enter  in  at  the  strait  gate ' :  that  there  is 
but  one  way  now  to  heaven,  as  formerly,  even 
through  the  narrow  passage  of  a  sound  con- 
version :  and  that  in  order  to  bring  about  this 
mighty  work,  thou  must  undergo  a  constant, 
but  necessary  discipline  of  fasting,  watching, 
and  prayer.  And,  therefore,  the  only  reason 
why  those  friends  give  thee  such  advice,  is, 
because  they  are  not  willing  to  take  so  much 
pains  themselves  ;  or,  as  our  Saviour  told  Peter 
on  a  like  occasion,  because  they  savour  not  the 
things  that  be  of  God,  but  the  things  that  be 
of  men. 

This,  then,  is  another  excellent  blessing 
arising  from  religious  society,  that  friends  can 
hereby  secure  each  other  from  those  who 
oppose  them.  The  devil  is  fully  sensible  of 
this,  and  therefore  he  has  always  done  his 
utmost   to   suppress,   and   put   a   stop   to,  the 


1 8        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

communion  of  saints.  This  was  his  grand 
artifice  at  the  first  planting  of  the  gospel,  to 
persecute  the  professors  of  it,  in  order  to 
separate  them.  Which,  though  God,  as  He 
always  will,  overruled  for  the  better ;  yet  it 
shows  what  an  enmity  he  has  against 
Christians  assembling  themselves  together. 
Nor  has  he  yet  left  off  his  old  stratagem, 
it  being  his  usual  way  to  entice  us  by 
ourselves,  in  order  to  tempt  us  ;  where,  by 
being  destitute  of  one  another's  help,  he 
hopes  to  lead  us  captive  at  his  will. 

But,  on  the  contrary,  knowing  his  own 
interest  is  strengthened  by  society,  he  would 
first  persuade  us  to  neglect  the  communion 
of  saints,  and  then  bid  us  '  stand  in  the 
way  of  sinners,'  hoping  thereby  to  put  us 
into  the  seat  of  the  scornful.  Judas  and 
Peter  are  melancholy  instances  of  this.  The 
former  had  no  sooner  left  his  company  at 
supper,  but  he  went  out  and  betrayed  his 
Master  ;  and  the  dismal  downfall  of  the  latter, 
when  he  would  venture  himself  amongst  a 
company  of  enemies,  plainly  shows  us  what 
the  devil  will  endeavour  to  do,  when  he  gets 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  19 

us  by  ourselves.  Had  Peter  kept  his  own 
company,  he  might  have  kept  his  integrity ; 
but  a  single  cord,  alas  !  how  quickly  was  it 
broken  !  Our  blessed  Saviour  knew  this  full 
well,  and  therefore  it  is  very  observable  that 
He  always  sent  out  His  disciples  two  by  two. 

And  now,  after  so  many  advantages  to  be 
reaped  from  religious  society,  may  we  not 
very  justly  cry  out  with  the  wise  man  in 
my  text,  *  Woe  be  to  him  that  is  alone  ;  for 
when  he  falleth,  he  hath  not  another  to  lift 
him  up  ! '  When  he  is  cold,  he  hath  not  a 
friend  to  warm  him  ;  when  he  is  assaulted, 
he  hath  not  a  second  to  help  him  to  withstand 
his  enemy. 

III.  I  now  come  to  my  third  general  head, 
under  which  was  to  be  shown  the  several  duties 
incumbent  on  every  member  of  a  religious 
society,  as  such,  which  are  three.  i.  Mutual 
reproof;  2.  Mutual  exhortation;  3.  Mutual 
assisting  and  defending  each  other. 

I .  Mutual  reproof.  '  Two  are  better  than 
one ;  for  when  they  fall,  the  one  will  lift  up 
his  fellow.' 

Now,   reproof   may   be    taken    either    in    a 


20        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

more  extensive  sense,  and  then  it  signifies 
our  raising  a  brother  by  the  gentlest  means, 
when  he  falls  into  sin  and  error  ;  or  in  a 
more  restrained  signification,  as  reaching  no 
farther  than  those  miscarriages  which  un- 
avoidably happen  in  the  most  holy  men 
living. 

The  wise  man  in  the  text  supposes  all  of 
us  subject  to  both  :  '  For  when  they  fall 
(thereby  implying  that  each  of  us  may  fall), 
the  one  will  lift  up  his  fellow.'  From  whence 
we  may  infer  that  *  when  any  brother  is 
overtaken  with  a  fault,  he  that  is  spiritual 
(that  is,  regenerate,  and  knows  the  corruption 
and  weakness  of  human  nature)  ought  to 
restore  such  an  one  in  the  spirit  of  meekness.' 
And  why  he  should  do  so,  the  apostle  subjoins 
a  reason — '  considering  thyself,  lest  thou  also  be 
tempted ;  '  that  is,  considering  thy  own  frailty, 
lest  thou  also  fall  by  the  like  temptation. 

We  are  all  frail,  unstable  creatures  ;  and  it 
is  merely  owing  to  the  free  grace  and  good 
providence  of  God  that  we  run  not  into  the 
same  excess  of  riot  with  other  men.  Every 
offending   brother,   therefore,   claims   our    pity 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  21 

rather  than  our  resentment ;  and  each  member 
should  strive  to  be  the  most  forward,  as  well 
as  the  most  gentle,  in  restoring  him  to  his 
former  state. 

But  supposing  a  person  not  to  be  overtaken, 
but  to  fall  wilfully  into  a  crime ;  yet  who  art 
thou  that  deniest  forgiveness  to  thy  offending 
brother?  'Let  him  that  standeth  take  heed 
lest  he  fall.'  Take  ye,  brethren,  the  holy 
apostles  as  eminent  examples  for  you  to  learn 
by,  how  you  ought  to  behave  in  this  matter. 
Consider  how  quickly  they  joined  the  right 
hand  of  fellowship  with  Peter,  who  had  so 
wilfully  denied  his  Master  :  for  we  find  John 
and  him  together  but  two  days  after,  John 
XX.  2.  And  verse  19,  we  find  him  assembled 
with  the  rest.  So  soon  did  they  forgive,  so 
soon  associate  with  their  sinful,  yet  relenting 
brother.     '  Let  us  go,  and  do  likewise.' 

But  there  is  another  kind  of  reproof  incum- 
bent on  every  member  of  a  religious  society, 
namely,  a  gentle  rebuke  for  some  miscarriage 
or  other,  which,  though  not  actually  sinful, 
yet  may  become  the  occasion  of  sin.  This 
indeed   seems  a  more  easy,  but   perhaps  will 


22        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

be  found  a  more  difficult  point  than  the 
former ;  for  when  a  person  has  really  sinned, 
he  cannot  but  own  his  brethren's  reproof  to 
be  just ;  whereas,  when  it  was  only  for  some 
little  misconduct,  the  pride  that  is  in  our 
natures  will  scarce  suffer  us  to  brook  it.  But 
however  ungrateful  this  pill  may  be  to  our 
brother,  yet  if  we  have  any  concern  for  his 
welfare,  it  must  be  administered  by  some 
friendly  hand  or  other.  By  all  means  then 
let  it  be  applied  ;  only,  like  a  skilful  physician, 
gild  over  the  ungrateful  pill,  and  endeavour, 
if  possible,  to  deceive  thy  brother  into  health 
and  soundness.  '  Let  all  bitterness,  and  wrath, 
and  malice,  and  evil-speaking  be  put  away 
from  you.'  Let  the  patient  know  his  recovery 
is  the  only  thing  aimed  at,  and  that  thou 
delightest  not  causelessly  to  grieve  thy  brother ; 
then  thou  canst  not  want  success. 

2.  Mutual  exhortation  is  the  second  duty 
resulting  from  the  words  of  the  text :  '  Again, 
if  two  lie  together,  then  they  have  heat' 

Observe,  the  wise  man  supposes  it  as 
impossible  for  religious  persons  to  meet 
together,    and    not    to    be    the    warmer    for 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  23 

each  other's  company,  as  for  two  persons  to 
lie  in  the  same  bed,  and  yet  freeze  with 
cold.  But  now  how  is  it  possible  to  com- 
municate heat  to  each  other,  without  mutually 
stirring  up  the  gift  of  God  which  is  in  us,  by 
brotherly  exhortation  ?  Let  every  member 
then  of  a  religious  society  write  that  zealous 
apostle's  advice  on  the  tables  of  his  heart  : 
*  See  that  ye  exhort  and  provoke  one  another 
to  love,  and  to  good  works ;  and  so  much 
the  more,  as  you  see  the  day  of  the  Lord 
approaching.'  Believe  me,  brethren,  we  have 
need  of  exhortation  to  rouse  up  our  sleepy 
souls,  to  set  us  upon  our  watch  against  the 
temptations  of  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the 
devil ;  to  excite  us  to  renounce  ourselves,  to 
take  up  our  crosses,  and  follow  our  blessed 
Master,  and  the  glorious  company  of  saints 
and  martyrs,  '  who  through  faith  have  fought 
the  good  fight,  and  are  gone  before  us  to 
inherit  the  promises.' 

A  third  part,  therefore,  of  the  time  wherein 
a  religious  society  meets,  seems  necessary  to  be 
spent  in  this  important  duty  ;  for  what  avails 
it  to  have  our  understandings  enlightened  by 


24       WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

pious  reading,  unless  our  wills  are  at  the 
same  time  inclined  and  inflamed  by  mutual 
exhortation  to  put  it  in  practice?  Add  also, 
that  this  is  the  best  way  both  to  receive  and 
impart  light,  and  the  only  means  to  preserve 
and  increase  that  warmth  and  heat  which  each 
person  first  brought  with  him  ;  God  so  ordering 
this,  as  all  other  spiritual  gifts,  that  '  to  him 
that  hath  (that  is,  improves  and  communicates 
what  he  hath)  shall  be  given  ;  but  from  him 
that  hath  not  (or  does  not  improve  the  heat  he 
hath)  shall  be  taken  away  even  that  which  he 
seemeth  to  have.'  So  needful,  so  essentially 
necessary,  is  exhortation  to  the  good  of 
society. 

3.  Thirdly^  The  text  points  out  another  duty 
incumbent  on  every  member  of  a  religious 
society — to  defend  each  other  from  those  that 
do  oppose  them  :  '  And  if  one  prevail  against 
him,  yet  two  shall  withstand  him  ;  and  a 
threefold  cord  is  not  quickly  broken.' 

Here  the  wise  man  takes  it  for  granted  that 
offences  will  come,  nay,  and  that  they  may 
prevail  too.  And  this  is  no  more  than  our 
blessed  Master  has  long  since  told   us.     Not, 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  25 

indeed,  that  there  is  anything  in  Christianity 
itself  that  has  the  least  tendency  to  give  rise 
to  or  promote  such  offences  :  no,  on  the  con- 
trary, it  breathes  nothing  but  unity  and  love. 

But  so  it  is,  that  ever  since  the  fatal  sentence 
pronounced  by  God,  after  our  first  parents'  fall, 
'  I  will  put  enmity  between  thy  seed  and  her 
seed,'  he  that  is  born  after  the  flesh,  the 
unregenerate,  unconverted  sinner,  has  in  all 
ages  '  persecuted  him  that  is  born  after  the 
Spirit '  :  and  so  it  always  will  be.  Accordingly 
we  find  an  early  proof  given  of  this  in  the 
instance  of  Cain  and  Abel ;  of  Ishmael  and 
Isaac  ;  and,  of  Jacob  and  Esau.  And,  indeed, 
the  whole  Bible  contains  little  else  but  a 
history  of  the  great  and  continued  opposition 
between  the  children  of  this  world  and  the 
children  of  God.  The  first  Christians  were 
remarkable  examples  of  this  ;  and  though  those 
troublesome  times,  blessed  be  God,  are  now 
over,  yet  the  apostle  has  laid  it  down  as  a 
general  rule,  and  all  who  are  sincere  experi- 
mentally prove  the  truth  of  it,  that  '  they  that 
will  live  godly  in  Christ  Jesus,  must  (to  the  end 
of  the  world,  in  some  degree  or  other)  suffer 


26        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

persecution.'  That  therefore  this  may  not 
make  us  desert  our  blessed  Master's  cause, 
every  member  should  unite  their  forces  in  order 
to  stand  against  it.  And  for  the  better  effecting 
this,  each  would  do  well,  from  time  to  time,  to 
communicate  his  experiences,  grievances,  and 
temptations,  and  beg  his  companions  (first 
asking  God's  assistance,  without  which  all  is 
nothing)  to  administer  reproof,  exhortation,  or 
comfort,  as  his  case  requires  :  so  that  '  if  one 
cannot  prevail  against  him,  two  shall  withstand 
him  ;  and  a  threefold  (much  less  a  many-fold) 
cord  will  not  be  quickly  broken.' 

IV.  But  it  is  time  for  me  to  proceed  to  the 
fourth  general  thing  proposed — to  draw  an 
inference   or  two   from   what  has  been  said. 

I .  And  first,  if  '  two  are  better  than  one,'  and 
the  advantages  of  religious  society  are  so  many 
and  so  great ;  then  it  is  the  duty  of  every  true 
Christian  to  set  on  foot,  establish,  and  promote, 
as  much  as  in  him  lies,  societies  of  this  nature. 
And  I  believe  we  may  venture  to  affirm,  that  if 
ever  a  spirit  of  true  Christianity  be  revived  in 
the  world,  it  must  be  brought  about  by  some 
such  means  as  this.      Motives  surely  cannot  be 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  27 

wanting,  to  stir  us  up  to  this  commendable  and 
necessary  undertaking;  for,  granting  all  hitherto 
advanced  to  be  of  no  force,  yet  methinks  the 
single  consideration,  that  great  part  of  our 
happiness  in  heaven  will  consist  in  the  communion 
of  saints,  or  that  the  interest  as  well  as  piety 
of  those  who  differ  from  us  is  strengthened 
and  supported  by  nothing  more  than  their 
frequent  meetings  ;  either  of  these  considera- 
tions, I  say,  one  would  think,  should  induce  us 
to  do  our  utmost  to  copy  after  their  good 
example,  and  settle  a  lasting  and  pious 
communion  of  the  saints  on  earth. 

Add  to  this,  that  we  find  the  kingdom  of 
darkness  established  daily  by  such  like  means  ; 
and  shall  not  the  kingdom  of  Christ  be  set  in 
opposition  against  it  ?  Shall  the  children  of 
Belial  assemble  and  strengthen  each  other  in 
wickedness  ;  and  shall  not  the  children  of  God 
unite  and  strengthen  themselves  in  piety? 
Shall  societies  on  societies  be  countenanced  for 
midnight  revellings,  and  the  promoting  of  vice, 
and  scarcely  one  be  found  intended  for  the 
propagation  of  virtue?  Be  astonished,  O 
heavens,  at  this  ! 


2  8        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

2.  But  this  leads  me  to  a  second  inference  ; 
namely,  to  warn  persons  of  the  great  danger 
those  are  in,  who,  either  by  their  subscriptions, 
presence,  or  approbation,  promote  societies  of  a 
quite  opposite  nature  to  religion. 

And  here  I  would  not  be  understood  to  mean 
only  those  public  meetings  which  are  designed 
manifestly  for  nothing  else  but  revellings  and 
banquetings,  for  chambering  and  wantonness, 
and  at  which  a  modest  heathen  would  blush  to 
be  present ;  but  also  those  seemingly  innocent 
entertainments  and  meetings,  which  the  politer 
part  of  the  world  are  so  very  fond  of,  and 
spend  so  much  time  in  ;  but  which,  not- 
withstanding, keep  as  many  persons  from  a 
sense  of  true  religion,  as  doth  intemperance, 
debauchery,  or  any  other  crime  whatever. 
Indeed,  whilst  we  are  in  this  world,  we  must 
have  proper  relaxations,  to  fit  us  both  for  the 
business  of  our  profession  and  religion.  But 
then,  for  persons  who  call  themselves  Christians, 
that  have  solemnly  vowed,  at  their  baptism,  to 
renounce  the  vanities  of  this  sinful  world  ;  that 
are  commanded  in  Scripture  '  to  abstain  from 
all  appearance  of  evil,  and  to  have  their  con- 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  29 

versation  in  heaven  ' ;  for  such  persons  as  these 
to  support  meetings,  which  (to  say  no  worse  of 
them)  are  vain  and  trifling,  and  have  a  natural 
tendency  to  draw  off  our  minds  from  God,  is 
absurd,  ridiculous,  and  sinful.  Surely  two  are 
not  better  than  one  in  this  case  ;  no,  it  is  to  be 
wished  there  was  not  one  to  be  found  concerned 
in  it.  The  sooner  we  forsake  the  assembling 
ourselves  together  in  such  a  manner,  the  better  ; 
and  no  matter  how  quickly  the  cord  that  holds 
such  societies  (was  it  a  thousand-fold)  is  broken. 

But  you,  brethren,  have  not  so  learned  Christ ; 
but,  on  the  contrary,  like  true  disciples  of  your 
Lord  and  Master,  have,  by  the  blessing  of  God 
(as  this  evening's  solemnity  abundantly  testifies), 
happily  formed  yourselves  into  such  societies, 
which,  if  duly  attended  on  and  improved,  cannot 
but  strengthen  you  in  your  Christian  warfare, 
and  '  make  you  fruitful  in  every  good  word  and 
work.' 

What  remains  for  me  but,  as  was  proposed 
in  the  last  place,  to  close  what  has  been  said, 
in  a  word  or  two,  by  way  of  exhortation,  and 
to  beseech  you,  in  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  to  go  on  in  the  way  you  have  begun. 


30        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

and  by  a  constant,  conscientious  attendance  on 
your  respective  societies,  to  discountenance  vice, 
encourage  virtue,  and  build  each  other  up  in 
the  knowledge  and  fear  of  God. 

Only  permit  me  to  *  stir  up  your  pure  minds, 
by  way  of  remembrance,'  and  to  exhort  you, 
*  if  there  be  any  consolation  in  Christ,  any 
fellowship  of  the  Spirit,'  again  and  again  to 
consider,  that  as  all  Christians  in  general,  so 
all  members  of  religious  societies  in  particular, 
are  in  an  especial  manner  as  houses  built  upon  a 
hill  ;  and  that  therefore  it  highly  concerns  you 
to  walk  circumspectly  towards  those  that  are 
without,  and  to  take  heed  to  yourselves  that 
your  conversation  in  common  life  be  as  be- 
cometh  such  an  open  and  peculiar  profession 
of  the  gospel  of  Christ ;  knowing  that  the  eyes 
of  all  men  are  upon  you,  narrowly  to  inspect 
every  circumstance  of  your  behaviour  ;  and 
that  every  notorious,  wilful  miscarriage  of  any 
single  member  will,  in  some  measure,  redound 
to  the  scandal  and  dishonour  of  your  whole 
fraternity. 

Labour  therefore,  my  beloved  brethren,  to 
let  your  practice  correspond  to  your  profession : 


RELIGIOUS  SOCIETY  31 

and  think  not  that  it  will  be  sufficient  for  you 
to  plead  at  the  last  day,  Lord,  have  we  not 
assembled  ourselves  together  in  Thy  name, 
and  enlivened  each  other  by  singing  psalms, 
and  hymns,  and  spiritual  songs  ?  For  verily  I 
say  unto  you,  notwithstanding  this,  our  blessed 
Lord  will  bid  you  depart  from  Him  ;  nay, 
you  shall  receive  a  greater  damnation,  if,  in  the 
midst  of  these  great  pretensions,  you  are  found 
to  be  workers  of  iniquity. 

But  God  forbid  that  any  such  evil  should 
befall  you  ;  that  there  should  be  ever  a  Judas, 
a  traitor,  amongst  such  distinguished  followers 
of  our  common  Master.  No,  on  the  contrary, 
the  excellency  of  your  rules,  the  regularity  of 
your  meetings,  and  more  especially  your  pious 
zeal  in  assembling  in  such  a  public  and  solemn 
manner  so  frequently  in  the  year,  persuade  me 
to  think  that  you  are  willing,  not  barely  to 
seem,  but  to  be  in  reality,  Christians  ;  and 
hope  to  be  found  at  the  last  day,  what  you 
would  be  esteemed  now,  holy,  sincere  disciples 
of  a  crucified  Redeemer. 

Oh,  may  you  always  continue  thus  minded  ! 
and    make  it  your  daily,  constant  endeavour, 


32        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

both  by  precept  and  example,  to  turn  all  your 
converse  with,  more  especially  those  of  your 
own  societies,  into  the  same  most  blessed  spirit 
and  temper.  Thus  will  you  adorn  the  gospel 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  all  things  :  thus 
will  you  anticipate  the  happiness  of  a  future 
state  ;  and  by  attending  on,  and  improving, 
the  communion  of  saints  on  earth,  be  made 
meet  to  join  the  communion  and  fellowship  of 
the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect,  of  the  holy 
angels,  nay,  of  the  ever-blessed  and  eternal  God 
in  heaven. 

Which  God  of  His  infinite  mercy  grant 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  :  to  Whom, 
with  the  Father  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  three 
Persons  and  one  God,  be  ascribed,  as  is  most 
due,  all  honour  and  praise,  might,  majesty,  and 
dominion,  now  and  for  ever.     Amen. 


II 

REGENERATION^ 


If  any  man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature.' — 2  Cor.  v.  17.  <\y^ 


The  doctrine  of  our  regeneration,  or  new  birth 
in  Christ  Jesus,  though  one  of  the  most  funda- 
mental doctrines  of  our  holy  religion  ;  though 
so  plainly  and  often  pressed  on  us  in  sacred 
writ,  '  that  he  who  runs  may  read  ' ;  nay,  though 
it  is  the  very  hinge  on  which  the  salvation  of 
each  of  us  turns,  and  a  point  too  in  which 
all  sincere  Christians,  of  every  denomination, 
agree  ;  yet  it  is  so  seldom  considered,  and  so 
little  experimentally  understood,  by  the  gener- 
ality of  professors,  that  were  we  to  judge  of 
the  truth  of  it  by  the  experience  of  most  who 
call  themselves  Christians,  we  should  be  apt  to 
imagine   they   had   '  not   so    much   as    heard  ' 

^ '  The  second  sermon  I  ever  made,  the  second  sermon  I  ever 
preached,'  says  Whitefield,  'was  on  this  text.'  This  sermon 
was  preached  at  the  Church  of  St  Mary  RedclifFe,  Bristol,  and 
was  pubHshed  in  August  1737. 

33 


W 


34 


WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 


whether  there  be  any  such  thing  as  regenera- 
tion, or  not. 

It  is  true,  men  for  the  most  part  are  ortho- 
dox in  the  common  articles  of  their  Creed  ; 
they  believe  '  there  is  but  one  God,  and  one 
Mediator  between  God  and  men,  even  the 
man  Christ  Jesus ' ;  and  that  there  is  no  other 
name  given  under  heaven,  whereby  they  can 
be  saved,  besides  His  :  but  then,  tell  them  they 
must  be  regenerated,  they  must  be  born  again, 
they  must  be  renewed  in  the  very  spirit,  in  the 
inmost  faculties  of  their  minds,  ere  they  can 
truly  call  Christ  '  Lord,  Lord,'  or  have  an 
evidence  that  they  have  any  share  in  the 
merits  of  His  precious  blood  ;  and  they  are 
ready  to  cry  out  with  Nicodemus,  '  How  can 
these  things  be  ?  '  or  with  the  Athenians,  on 
another  occasion,  *  What  will  this  babbler  say  ?  ' 
He  seemeth  to  be  a  setter  forth  of  strange 
doctrines,  because  we  preach  unto  them 
Christ,  and  the  new  birth. 

That  I  may  therefore  contribute  my  mite 
towards  curing  the  fatal  mistake  of  such  per- 
sons, who  would  thus  put  asunder  what  God 
has   inseparably    joined    together,    and   vainly 


REGENERATION  35 

think  they  are  justified  by  Christ,  or  have  their 
sins  forgiven,  and  His  perfect  obedience  im- 
puted to  them,  when  they  are  not  sanctified, 
have  not  their  natures  changed  and  made  holy, 
I  shall  beg  leave  to  enlarge  on  the  words  of 
the  text  in  the  following  manner. 

Firsts  I  shall  endeavour  to  explain  what  is 
meant  by  being  in  Christ :  '  If  any  man  be  in 
Christ.' 

Secondly,  What  we  are  to  understand  by 
being  a  new  creature  :  'If  any  man  be  in 
Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature.' 

Thirdly,  I  shall  produce  some  arguments  to 
make  good  the  apostle's  assertion.     And, 

Fourthly,  I  shall  draw  some  inferences  from 
what  may  be  delivered,  and  then  conclude  with 
a  word  or  two  of  exhortation. 

First,  I  am  to  endeavour  to  explain  what  is 
meant  by  this  expression  in  the  text,  '  If  any 
man  be  in  Christ' 

Now  a  person  may  be  said  to  be  in  Christ 
two  ways. 

First,  Only  by  an  outward  profession.  And 
in  this  sense,  every  one  that  is  called  a  Chris- 


2,6        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

tian,  or  baptised  into  Christ's  Church,  may  be 
said  to  be  in  Christ.  But  that  this  is  not  the 
sole  meaning  of  the  apostle's  phrase  before  us, 
is  evident,  because  then  every  one  that  names 
the  name  of  Christ,  or  is  baptised  into  His 
visible  Church,  would  be  a  new  creature. 
Which  is  notoriously  false,  it  being  too  plain 
beyond  all  contradiction,  that  comparatively 
but  few  of  those  that  are  '  born  of  water '  are 
'  born  of  the  Spirit '  likewise  ;  to  use  another 
spiritual  way  of  speaking,  many  are  baptised 
with  water  who  were  never  baptised  with  the 
Holy  Ghost.  To  be  in  Christ,  therefore,  in 
the  full  import  of  the  word,  must  certainly 
mean  something  more  than  a  bare  outward 
profession,  or  being  called  after  His  name. 
For,  as  this  same  apostle  tells  us,  *  All  are  not 
Israelites  that  are  of  Israel ' ;  so  when  applied 
to  Christianity,  all  are  not  real  Christians  that 
are  nominally  such.  Nay,  this  is  so  far  from 
being  the  case,  that  our  blessed  Lord  Himself 
informs  us,  that  many  who  have  prophesied  or 
preached  in  His  name,  and  in>His  name  cast 
out  devils  and  done  many  wonderful  works, 
shall  notwithstanding  be  dismissed  at  the  last 


REGENERATION  37 

day  with,  *  Depart  from  Me,  I  know  you  not, 
ye  workers  of  iniquity.' — It  remains,  therefore, 
that  this  expression,  *  if  any  man  be  in  Christ,' 
must  be  understood  in  a 

Second  and  closer  signification, — to  be  in 
Him  so  as  to  partake  of  the  benefits  of  His 
sufferings.  To  be  in  Him  not  only  by  an  out- 
ward profession,  but  by  an  inward  change  and 
purity  of  heart,  and  cohabitation  of  His  Holy 
Spirit.  To  be  in  Him,  so  as  to  be  mystically 
united  to  Him  by  a  true  and  lively  faith,  and 
thereby  to  receive  spiritual  virtue  from  Him, 
as  the  members  of  the  natural  body  do  from 
the  head,  or  the  branches  from  the  vine.  To 
be  in  Him  in  such  a  manner  as  the  apostle, 
speaking  of  himself,  acquaints  us  he  knew  a 
person  was,  '  I  knew  a  man  in  Christ,'  a  true 
Christian  ;  or,  as  he  himself  desires  to  be  in 
Christ,  when  he  wishes,  in  his  Epistle  to  the 
Philippians,  that  he  might  be  found  in  Him. 
This  is  undoubtedly  the  proper  meaning  of  the 
apostle's  expression  in  the  words  of  the  text ; 
so  that  what  he  says  in  his  Epistle  to  the 
Romans  about  circumcision,  may  very  well  be 
applied  to  the  present  subject :  that  he  is  not 


38        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

a  real  Christian  who  is  only  one  outwardly  ; 
nor  is  that  true  baptism  which  is  only  outward 
in  the  flesh.  But  he  is  a  true  Christian  who  is 
one  inwardly,  whose  baptism  is  that  of  the 
heart,  in  the  Spirit,  and  not  merely  in  the  water, 
whose  praise  is  not  of  man,  but  of  God.  Or, 
as  he  speaks  in  another  place,  '  neither  circum- 
cision nor  uncircumcision  availeth  anything  (of 
itself),  but  a  new  creature.'  Which  amounts 
to  what  he  here  declares  in  the  verse  now 
under  consideration,  that  if  any  man  be  truly 
and  properly  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature. 
Which  brings  me  to  show, 

Secondly^  What  we  are  to  understand  by 
being  a  new  creature. — And  here  it  is  evident 
at  the  first  view,  that  this  expression  is  not 
to  be  so  explained  as  though  there  were  a 
physical  change  required  to  be  made  in  us  ; 
or  as  though  we  were  to  be  reduced  to  our 
primitive  nothings,  and  then  created  and 
formed  again.  For,  supposing  we  were,  as 
Nicodemus  ignorantly  imagined,  to  enter  a 
*  second  time  into  our  mother's  womb,  and  be 
born,'  alas  !  what  would  it  contribute  towards 
rendering  us  spiritually  new  creatures?     Since 


REGENERATION  39 

*  that  which  was  born  of  the  flesh  would  be 
flesh  still ; '  we  should  be  the  same  carnal 
persons  as  ever,  being  derived  from  carnal 
parents,  and  consequently  receiving  the  seeds 
of  all  manner  of  sin  and  corruption  from  them. 

No ;  it  only  means  that  we  must  be  so 
altered  as  to  the  qualities  and  tempers  of  our 
minds,  that  we  must  entirely  forget  what 
manner  of  persons  we  once  were.  As  it 
may  be  said  of  a  piece  of  gold  that  was  once 
in  the  ore,  after  it  has  been  cleansed,  purified, 
and  polished,  that  it  is  a  new  piece  of  gold  ; 
as  it  may  be  said  of  a  bright  glass  that  has 
been  covered  over  with  filth,  when  it  is  wiped, 
and  so  become  transparent  and  clear,  that  it 
is  a  new  glass  ;  or,  as  it  might  be  said  of 
Naaman,  when  he  recovered  of  his  leprosy,  and 
his  flesh  returned  unto  him  like  the  flesh  of  a 
young  child,  that  he  was  a  new  man  :  so  our 
souls,  though  still  the  same  as  to  essence,  yet 
are  so  purged,  purified,  and  cleansed  from  their 
natural  dross,  filth,  and  leprosy,  by  the  blessed 
influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  that  they  may 
be  properly  said  to  be  made  anew. 

How  this  glorious  change  is  wrought  in  the 


40        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

soul  cannot  easily  be  explained  :  for  no  one 
knows  the  ways  of  the  Spirit,  save  the  Spirit 
of  God  Himself.  Not  that  this  ought  to  be 
any  argument  against  this  doctrine  ;  for,  as 
our  blessed  Lord  observed  to  Nicodemus,  when 
He  was  discoursing  on  this  very  subject,  '  The 
wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and  thou  hearest 
the  sound  thereof,  but  knowest  not  whence  it 
Cometh,  and  whither  it  goeth ' ;  and  if  we  are 
told  of  natural  things,  and  we  understand 
them  not,  how  much  less  ought  we  to  wonder 
if  we  cannot  immediately  account  for  the 
invisible  workings  of  the  Holy  Spirit  !  The 
truth  of  the  matter  is  this  :  the  doctrine  of 
our  regeneration,  or  new  birth  in  Christ  Jesus, 
is  hard  to  be  understood  by  the  natural  man. 
But  that  there  is  really  such  a  thing,  and  that 
each  of  us  must  be  spiritually  born  again,  I 
shall  endeavour  to  show  under  my 

Third  general  head,  in  which  I  was  to 
produce  some  arguments  to  make  good  the 
apostle's  assertion. 

And  here  one  would  think  it  sufficient  to 
affirm, — Firsts  that  God  Himself,  in  His  holy 
Word,  has  told  us  so.      Many  texts  might  be 


REGENERATIOISJ  41 

produced  out  of  the  Old  Testament  to  prove 
this  point  ;  and,  indeed,  one  would  wonder 
how  Nicodemus,  who  was  a  teacher  in  Israel, 
and  who  was  therefore  to  instruct  the  people 
in  the  spiritual  meaning  of  the  law,  should  be 
so  ignorant  of  this  grand  article,  as  we  find  he 
really  was,  by  his  asking  our  blessed  Lord, 
when  He  was  pressing  on  him  this  topic.  How 
can  these  things  be?  Surely  he  could  not 
forget  how  often  the  psalmist  had  begged  of 
God  to  make  him  a  *  new  heart,'  and 'to  renew 
a  right  spirit  within  him '  ;  as  likewise,  how 
frequently  the  prophets  had  warned  the  people 
to  make  them  '  new  hearts '  and  new  minds, 
and  so  turn  unto  the  Lord  their  God. 

But  not  to  mention  these  and  such-like  texts 
out  of  the  Old  Testament,  this  doctrine  is  so 
often  and  plainly  repeated  in  the  New,  that,  as 
I  observed  before,  he  who  runs  may  read.  For 
what  says  the  great  Prophet  and  Instructor  of 
the  world  Himself :  '  Except  a  man  (every  one 
that  is  naturally  the  offspring  of  Adam)  be  born 
again  of  water  and  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God.'  And  lest  we  should 
be  apt  to  slight  this  assertion,  and,  Nicodemus- 


42        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

like,  reject  the  doctrine,  because  we  cannot 
immediately  explain  '  how  this  thing  can  be,' 
our  blessed  Master  therefore  ajRfirms  it,  as  it 
were,  by  an  oath,  *  Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto 
you,'  or,  as  it  may  be  read,  I  the  Amen  ;  I, 
who  am  Truth  itself,  say  unto  you,  that  it  is 
the  unalterable  appointment  of  My  Heavenly 
Father,  that  '  unless  a  man  be  born  again,  he 
cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.' 

Agreeable  to  this  are  those  many  passages 
we  meet  with  in  the  Epistles,  where  we  are 
commanded  to  be  *  renewed  in  the  spirit,'  or, 
which  was  before  explained,  in  the  inmost 
faculties  of  our  minds  ;  '  to  put  off  the  old  man, 
which  is  corrupt  ;  and  to  put  on  the  new  man, 
which  is  created  after  God,  in  righteousness 
and  true  holiness ' ;  that  *  old  things  must  pass 
away,  and  that  all  things  must  become  new ' ; 
that  we  are  to  be  '  saved  by  the  washing  of 
regeneration,  and  the  renewing  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.'  Or,  methinks,  were  there  no  other 
passage  to  be  produced  besides  the  words  of 
the  text,  it  would  be  full  enough,  since  the 
apostle  therein  affirms,  that  '  If  any  man  be  in 
Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature.' — Now,  what  can 


REGENERATION  43 

be  understood  by  all  these  different  terms  of 
being  born  again,  oi putting  off  the  old  many  and 
putting  on  the  new,  of  being  renewed  in  the 
spirit  of  our  minds,  and  becoming  new  creatures  ; 
but  that  Christianity  requires  a  thorough,  real, 
inward  change  of  heart  ?  Do  we  think  these 
and  such-like  forms  of  speaking  are  mere 
metaphors,  words  of  a  bare  sound,  without  any 
real  solid  signification  ?  Indeed,  it  is  to  be 
feared,  some  men  would  have  them  interpreted 
so  ;  but,  alas !  unhappy  men  !  they  are  not  to 
be  envied  in  their  metaphorical  interpretation  : 
it  will  be  well  if  they  do  not  interpet  themselves 
out  of  their  salvation. 

Multitudes  of  other  texts  might  be  produced 
to  confirm  this  same  truth,  but  those  already 
quoted  are  so  plain  and  convincing  that  one 
would  imagine  no  one  should  deny  it  ;  were 
we  not  told  there  are  some,  '  who  having  eyes 
see  not,  and  ears  hear  not,  and  that  will  not 
understand  with  their  hearts,  or  hear  with  their 
ears,  lest  they  should  be  converted,  and  Christ 
should  heal  them.'      But  I  proceed  to  a — 

Second  argument ;  and  that  shall  be  taken 
from    the    purity    of    God,    and    the    present 


44        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

corrupt  and  polluted  state  of  man.  God  is 
described  in  Holy  Scripture  (and  I  speak  to 
those  who  profess  to  know  the  Scripture)  as 
a  Spirit ;  as  a  Being  of  such  infinite  sanctity, 
as  to  be  of  '  purer  eyes  than  to  behold 
iniquity ' ;  as  to  be  so  transcendently  holy, 
that  it  is  said  *  the  very  heavens  are  not  clean 
in  His  sight ;  and  the  angels  themselves  He 
chargeth  with  folly.' 

On  the  other  hand,  man  is  described  (and 
every  regenerate  person  will  find  it  true  by  his 
own  experience)  as  a  creature  altogether  '  con- 
ceived and  born  in  sin  '  ;  as  having  '  no  good 
thing  dwelling  in  him '  ;  as  being  '  carnal, 
sold  under  sin '  ;  nay,  as  having  a  '  mind 
which  is  at  enmity  with  God,'  and  such-like. 
And  since  there  is  such  an  infinite  disparity, 
can  any  one  conceive  how  a  filthy,  corrupted, 
polluted  wretch  can  dwell  with  an  infinitely 
pure  and  holy  God  before  he  is  changed, 
and  rendered  in  some  measure  like  Him  ? 
Can  He  who  is  of  purer  eyes  than  to  behold 
iniquity  dwell  with  it  ?  Can  He  in  whose 
sight  the  heavens  are  not  clean,  delight  to 
dwell  with  uncleanness  itself?       No,  we  might 


REGENERATION  45 

as  well  suppose  light  to  have  communion  with 
darkness,  or  Christ  to  have  concord  with  Belial. 
— But  I  pass  on  to  a — 

Third  argument,  which  shall  be  founded  on 
the  consideration  of  the  nature  of  that  happi- 
ness God  has  prepared  for  those  that  unfeign- 
edly  love  Him.  —  To  enter  indeed  on  a 
minute  and  particular  description  of  heaven 
would  be  vain  and  presumptuous,  since  we 
are  told  that  '  eye  hath  not  seen,  nor  ear 
heard,  neither  hath  it  entered  into  the  heart 
of  man  to  conceive,  the  things  that  are  there 
prepared  '  for  the  sincere  followers  of  the  holy 
Jesus,  even  in  this  life,  much  less  in  that  which 
is  to  come.  However,  this  we  may  venture  to 
affirm  in  general,  that  as  God  is  a  Spirit,  so 
the  happiness  He  has  laid  up  for  His  people 
is  spiritual  likewise  :  and  consequently,  unless 
our  carnal  minds  are  changed  and  spiritualised, 
we  can  never  be  made  meet  to  partake  of  that 
inheritance  with  the  saints  in  light. 

It  is  true,  we  may  flatter  ourselves,  that 
supposing  we  continue  in  our  natural  corrupt 
estate,  and  carry  all  our  lusts  along  with  us, 
we  should,  notwithstanding,  relish  heaven,  were 


46        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

God  to  admit  us  therein.  And  so  we  might, 
was  it  a  Mahometan  paradise,  wherein  we 
were  to  take  our  full  swing  in  sensual  delights. 
Since  its  joys  are  only  spiritual,  and  no 
unclean  thing  can  possibly  enter  those  blessed 
mansions,  there  is  an  absolute  necessity  of  our 
being  changed,  and  undergoing  a  total  renova- 
tion of  our  depraved  natures,  before  we  can 
have  any  taste  or  relish  of  those  heavenly 
pleasures. 

It  is,  doubtless,  for  this  reason,  that  the 
apostle  declares  it  to  be  the  irrevocable  decree 
of  the  Almighty,  that  '  without  holiness  (with- 
out being  made  pure  by  regeneration,  and 
having  the  image  of  God  thereby  reinstamped 
upon  the  soul),  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord.' 
And  it  is  very  observable,  that  our  Divine 
Master,  in  the  famous  passage  before  referred 
to,  concerning  the  absolute  necessity  of  regen- 
eration, does  not  say,  Unless  a  man  be  born 
again,  he  shall  not,  but  *  unless  a  man  be 
born  again,  he  cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom 
of  God.'  It  is  founded  in  the  very  nature  of 
things,  that  unless  we  have  dispositions  wrought 
in  us  suitable  to  the  objects  that  are  to  enter- 


REGENERATION  47 

tain  us,  we  can  take  no  manner  of  complacency 
or  satisfaction  in  them. 

For  instance,  what  delight  can  the  most 
harmonious  music  afford  to  a  deaf,  or  what 
pleasure  can  the  most  excellent  picture  give 
to  a  blind,  man  ?  Can  a  tasteless  palate  relish 
the  richest  dainties,  or  a  filthy  swine  be  pleased 
with  the  finest  garden  of  flowers  ?  No  :  and 
what  reason  can  be  assigned  for  it  ?  An 
answer  is  ready  :  Because  they  have  neither 
of  them  any  tempers  of  mind  correspondent  or 
agreeable  to  what  they  are  to  be  diverted  with. 

And  thus  it  is  with  the  soul  hereafter  :  for 
death  makes  no  alteration  in  the  soul,  than 
as  it  enlarges  its  faculties,  and  makes  it 
capable  of  receiving  deeper  impressions  either 
of  pleasure  or  pain.  If  it  delighted  to  con- 
verse with  God  here,  it  will  be  transported 
with  the  sight  of  His  glorious  majesty  here- 
after. If  it  were  pleased  with  the  common 
saints  on  earth,  it  will  be  infinitely  more  so 
with  the  communion  and  society  of  holy 
angels,  and  the  spirits  of  just  men  made 
perfect  in  heaven.  But  if  the  opposite  of  all 
this  be  true,  we  may  assure  ourselves,  the  soul 


48        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS  - 

could  not  be  happy,  were  God  Himself  to 
admit  it  (which  He  never  will  do)  into  the 
regions  of  the  blessed. — But  it  is  time  for  me 
to  hasten  to  the — 

Fourth  argument,  because  Christ's  redemp- 
tion will  not  be  complete  in  us,  unless  we 
are  new  creatures.  If  we  reflect,  indeed,  on 
the  first  and  chief  end  of  our  blessed  Lord's 
coming,  we  shall  find  it  was  to  be  a  pro- 
pitiation for  our  sins,  to  give  His  life  a 
ransom  for  many.  But,  then,  if  the  benefits 
of  our  dear  Redeemer's  death  were  to  extend 
no  farther  than  barely  to  procure  forgive- 
ness of  our  sins,  we  should  have  as  little 
reason  to  rejoice  in  it,  as  a  poor  condemned 
criminal,  that  is  ready  to  perish  by  some  fatal 
disease,  would  have  in  receiving  a  pardon 
from  his  judge.  For  Christians  would  do  well 
to  consider,  that  there  is  not  only  a  legal 
hindrance  to  our  happiness,  as  we  are  breakers 
of  God's  law,  but  also  a  moral  impurity  in 
our  natures,  which  renders  us  incapable  of 
enjoying  heaven  (as  hath  been  already  proved), 
till  some  mighty  change  have  been  wrought 
in  us. 


REGENERATION  49 

It  is  necessary,  therefore,  in  order  to  make 
Christ's  redemption  complete,  that  we  should 
have  a  grant  of  God's  Holy  Spirit  to  change 
our  natures,  and  so  prepare  us  for  the  enjoy- 
ment of  that  happiness  our  Saviour  has  pur- 
chased by  His  precious  blood.  Accordingly,' 
the  Holy  Scriptures  inform  us,  that  whom 
Christ  justifies,  or  whose  sins  He  forgives, 
and  to  whom  He  imputes  His  perfect  obedi- 
ence, those  He  also  sanctifies,  purifies,  and 
cleanses,  and  totally  changeth  their  corrupted 
natures.  As  the  Scripture  also  speaketh  in 
another  place,  '  Christ  is  to  us  justification, 
sanctification,  and  then  redemption.'      But — 

Fourthly^  Proceed  we  now  to  the  next  gen- 
eral thing  proposed,  to  draw  some  inferences 
from  what  has  been  delivered.      And — 

First,  If  he  that  is  in  Christ  be  a  new  creature, 
this  may  serve  as  a  reproof  for  those  who 
rest  in  a  bare  performance  of  outward  duties, 
without  perceiving  any  real  inward  change 
of  heart. — We  may  observe  a  great  many 
persons  to  be  very  punctual  in  the  regular 
returns  of  public  and  private  prayer,  as  likewise 
of  receiving  the  Holy  Communion,  and  perhaps 


so        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

now  and  then  too  in  keeping  a  fast.  But  here 
is  the  misfortune  :  they  rest  barely  in  the  use 
of  the  means,  and  think  all  is  over,  when  they 
have  thus  complied  with  those  sacred  institu- 
tions ;  whereas,  were  they  rightly  informed, 
they  would  consider  that  all  the  instituted 
means  of  grace,  as  prayer,  fasting,  hearing  and 
reading  the  Word  of  God,  receiving  the  blessed 
sacrament,  and  such  like,  are  no  farther  service- 
able to  us,  than  as  they  are  found  to  make  us 
inwardly  better,  and  to  carry  on  the  spiritual 
life  in  the  soul.  It  is  true,  they  are  means  ; 
but  then  they  are  only  means  ;  they  are  part,  but 
not  the  whole  of  religion:  for  if  so,  who  more 
religious  than  the  Pharisee  ?  He  fasted  twice 
in  the  week,  and  gave  tithes  of  all  that  he 
possessed,  and  yet  was  not  justified,  as  our 
Saviour  Himself  informs  us,  in  the  sight  of  God. 
You  perhaps,  like  the  Pharisee,  may  fast 
often,  and  make  long  prayers ;  you  may, 
with  Herod,  hear  good  sermons  gladly.  But 
yet,  if  you  continue  vain  and  trifling,  immoral 
or  worldly-minded,  and  differ  from  the  rest  of 
your  neighbours  barely  in  going  to  church,  or 
in  complying  with  some  outward  performances, 


REGENERATION  51 

are  you  better  than  they  ?  No,  in  no  wise  ; 
you  are  by  far  much  worse  :  for  if  you  use 
them,  and  at  the  same  time  abuse  them,  you 
thereby  encourage  others  to  think  there  is 
nothing  in  them,  and  therefore  must  expect  to 
receive  the  greater  damnation.      But — 

Secondly,  If  he  that  is  in  Christ  be  a  new 
creature,  then  this  may  check  the  groundless 
presumption  of  another  class  of  professors,  who 
rest  in  the  attainment  of  some  moral  virtues, 
and  falsely  imagine  they  are  good  Christians, 
if  they  are  just  in  their  dealings,  temperate  in 
their  ciiet,  and  do  no  hurt  or  violence  to  any 
man.  But  if  this  were  all  that  is  requisite  to 
make  us  Christians,  why  might  not  the  heathens 
of  old  be  good  Christians,  who  were  remarkable 
for  these  virtues  ?  or  St  Paul  before  his  conver- 
sion, who  tells  us  that  he  lived  in  all  good 
conscience  ?  But  we  find  he  renounces  all 
dependence  on  works  of  this  nature,  and  only 
desires  to  be  found  in  Christ,  and  to  know  the 
power  of  His  resurrection,  or  have  an  experi- 
mental proof  of  receiving  the  Holy  Ghost  pur- 
chased for  him  by  the  death,  and  ensured  and 
applied  to  him  by  the  resurrection,of  Jesus  Christ. 


52        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

The  sum  of  the  matter  is  this  :  Christianity 
includes  morality,  as  grace  does  reason  ;  but  if 
we  are  only  mere  moralists,  if  we  are  not  in- 
wardly wrought  upon,  and  changed  by  the 
powerful  operations  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and 
our  moral  actions  proceed  from  a  principle  of 
a  new  nature,  however  we  may  call  ourselves 
Christians,  we  shall  be  found  naked  at  the 
great  day,  and  in  the  number  of  those  who 
have  neither  Christ's  righteousness  imputed  to 
them  for  their  justification  in  the  sight,  nor 
holiness  enough  in  their  souls  as  the  conse- 
quence of  that,  in  order  to  make  them  meet 
for  the  enjoyment  of  God.      Nor, 

Thirdly,  Will  this  doctrine  less  condemn 
those  who  rest  in  a  partial  amendment  of 
themselves,  without  experiencing  a  thorough, 
real,  inward  change  of  heart. — A  little  acquaint- 
ance with  the  world  will  furnish  us  with 
instances  of  no  small  number  of  persons,  who, 
perhaps,  were  before  openly  profane ;  but 
seeing  the  ill  consequences  of  their  vices,  and 
the  many  worldly  inconveniences  it  has  reduced 
them  to,  on  a  sudden,  as  it  were,  grow  civilised  ; 
and  thereupon  flatter  themselves  that  they  are 


REGENERATION  53 

very  religious,  because  they  differ  a  little  from 
their  former  selves,  and  are  not  so  scandalously 
wicked  as  once  they  were :  whereas,  at  the 
same  time,  they  shall  have  some  secret  darling 
sin  or  other,  some  beloved  Delilah  or  Herodias, 
which  they  will  not  part  with  ;  some  hidden 
lust,  which  they  will  not  mortify  ;  some  vicious 
habit,  which  they  will  not  take  pains  to  root 
out.  But  wouldest  thou  know,  O  vain  man  ! 
whoever  thou  art,  what  the  Lord  thy  God 
requires  of  thee?  Thou  must  be  informed, 
that  nothing  short  of  a  thorough  sound  con- 
version will  fit  thee  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
It  is  not  enough  to  turn  from  profaneness  to 
civility  ;  but  thou  must  turn  from  civility  to 
godliness.  Not  only  some,  but  '  all  things 
must  become  new '  in  thy  soul.  It  will  profit 
thee  but  little  to  do  many  things,  if  yet  some 
one  thing  thou  lackest.  In  short,  thou  must 
not  only  be  an  almost,  but  altogether  a  new 
creature,  or  in  vain  thou  boastest  that  thou  art 
a  Christian. 

Fourthly,  If  he  that  is  in  Christ  be  a  new 
creature,  then  this  may  be  prescribed  as  an 
infallible    rule    for  every   person,  of  whatever 


54        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

denomination,  age,  degree,  or  quality,  to  judge 
himself  by  ;  this  being  the  only  solid  founda- 
tion whereon  we  can  build  a  well-grounded 
assurance  of  pardon,  peace,  and  happiness.  We 
may  indeed  depend  on  the  broken  reed  of  an 
external  profession ;  we  may  think  we  are 
good  enough,  if  we  lead  such  sober,  honest, 
moral  lives,  as  many  heathens  did.  We  may 
imagine  we  are  in  a  safe  condition,  if  we  attend 
on  the  public  offices  of  religion,  and  are  con- 
stant in  the  duties  of  our  closets.  But  unless 
all  these  tend  to  reform  our  lives,  and  change 
our  hearts,  and  are  only  used  as  so  many 
channels  of  divine  grace  :  as  I  told  you  before, 
so  I  tell  you  again,  Christianity  will  profit  you 
nothing. 

Let  each  of  us  therefore  seriously  put  this 
question  to  our  hearts  :  Have  we  received  the 
Holy  Ghost  since  we  believed  ?  Are  we  new 
creatures  in  Christ,  or  no  ?  At  least,  if  we  are 
not  so  yet,  is  it  our  daily  endeavour  to  become 
such  ?  Do  we  constantly  and  conscientiously 
use  all  the  means  of  grace  required  thereto  ? 
Do  we  fast,  watch,  and  pray  ?  Do  we,  not 
lazily  seek,  but   laboriously  strive  to  enter  in 


REGENERATION  S5 

at  the  strait  gate?  In  short,  do  we  renounce 
our  own  righteousness,  take  up  our  crosses, 
and  follow  Christ  ?  If  so,  we  are  in  that 
narrow  way  which  leads  to  life  ;  the  good  seed 
is  sown  in  our  hearts,  and  will,  if  duly  watered 
and  nourished  by  a  regular  persevering  use 
of  all  the  means  of  grace,  grow  up  to  eternal 
life. 

But,  on  the  contrary,  if  we  have  only  heard, 
and  know  not  experimentally,  whether  there 
be  any  Holy  Ghost ;  if  we  are  strangers 
to  fasting,  watching,  and  prayer,  and  all  the 
other  spiritual  exercises  of  devotion  ;  if  we  are 
content  to  go  in  the  broad  way,  merely  because 
we  see  most  other  people  do  so,  without  once 
reflecting  whether  it  be  the  right  one  or  not ; 
in  short,  if  we  are  strangers,  nay,  enemies 
to  the  Cross  of  Christ,  by  lives  of  worldly- 
mindedness  and  sensual  pleasure,  and  thereby 
make  others  think  that  Christianity  is  but  an 
empty  name,  a  bare  formal  profession  ;  if  this 
be  the  case,  I  say,  Christ  is  as  yet  dead  in  vain 
to  us.  We  are  under  the  guilt  of  our  sins, 
and  are  unacquainted  with  a  true  and  thorough 
conversion. 


S6        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

But,  beloved,  I  am  persuaded  better  things 
of  you,  and  things  that  accompany  salvation 
though  I  thus  speak  ;  I  would  humbly  hope 
that  you  are  sincerely  persuaded,  that  he  who 
has  not  the  Spirit  of  Christ  is  none  of  His  ; 
and  that  unless  the  Spirit  which  raised  Jesus 
from  the  dead  dwell  in  you  here,  neither  will 
your  mortal  bodies  be  quickened  by  the  same 
Spirit  to  dwell  with  Him  hereafter. 

Let  me,  therefore  (as  was  proposed  in  the 
las^  place),  earnestly  exhort  you,  in  the  name 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  to  act  suitably  to 
those  convictions,  and  to  live  as  Christians, 
that  are  commanded  in  holy  writ,  to  '  put  off 
their  former  conversation  concerning  the  old 
man,  and  to  put  on  the  new  man,  which  is 
created  after  God  in  righteousness  and  true 
holiness.' 

It  must  be  owned,  indeed,  that  this  is  a 
great  and  difficult  work  ;  but,  blessed  be  God, 
it  is  not  impossible.  Many  thousands  of 
happy  souls  have  been  assisted  by  a  divine 
power  to  bring  it  about.  And  why  should 
we  despair  of  success?  Is  God's  hand 
shortened,  that  it  cannot  save  ?      Was  He  the 


REGENERATION  57 

God  of  our  fathers ;  is  He  not  the  God  of 
their  children  also?  Yes,  doubtless,  of  their 
children  also.  It  is  a  task  likewise  that  will 
put  us  to  some  pain  ;  it  will  oblige  us  to  part 
with  some  lust,  to  break  with  some  friend,  to 
mortify  some  beloved  passion,  which  may  be 
exceeding  dear  to  us,  and  perhaps  as  hard  to 
leave,  as  to  cut  off  a  right  hand  or  pluck  out 
a  right  eye.  But  what  of  all  this  ?  Will  not 
the  being  made  a  real  living  member  of  Christ, 
a  child  of  God,  and  an  inheritor  of  the  kingdom 
of  heaven,  abundantly  make  amends  for  all 
this  trouble  ?  Undoubtedly  it  will.  The 
setting  about  and  carrying  on  this  great  and 
necessary  work,  perhaps  may,  nay,  assuredly 
will,  expose  us  also  to  the  ridicule  of  the 
unthinking  part  of  mankind,  who  will  wonder 
that  we  run  not  into  the  same  excess  of  riot 
with  themselves  ;  and  because  we  deny  our 
sinful  appetites,  and  are  not  conformed  to  this 
world,  being  commanded  in  Scripture  to  do 
the  one,  and  to  have  our  conversation  in 
heaven,  in  opposition  to  the  other,  they  may 
count  our  lives  folly,  and  our  end  to  be  without 
honour.      But  will   not    the    being    numbered 


58        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

among  the  saints,  and  shining  as  the  stars  for 
ever  and  ever,  be  a  more  than  sufficient 
recompense  for  all  the  ridicule,  calumny,  or 
reproach,  we  can  possibly  meet  with  here  ? 

Indeed,  were  there  no  other  reward  attending 
a  thorough  conversion,  but  that  peace  of  God, 
which  is  the  unavoidable  consequence  of  it, 
and  which,  even  in  this  life,  '  passeth  all 
understanding,'  we  should  have  great  reason 
to  rejoice.  But  when  we  consider  that  this  is 
the  least  of  those  mercies  God  has  prepared 
for  those  that  are  in  Christ,  and  become  new 
creatures  ;  that  this  is  but  the  beginning  of  an 
eternal  succession  of  pleasures  ;  that  the  day 
of  our  deaths,  which  the  unconverted,  un- 
renewed sinner  must  so  much  dread,  will  be, 
as  it  were,  but  the  first  day  of  our  new  birth, 
and  open  to  us  an  everlasting  scene  of  happi- 
ness and  comfort ;  in  short,  if  we  remember, 
that  they  who  are  regenerate  and  born  again, 
have  a  real  title  to  all  the  glorious  promises  of 
the  Gospel,  and  are  infallibly  certain  of  being 
as  happy,  both  here  and  hereafter,  as  an  all- 
wise,  all-gracious,  all-powerful  God  can  make 
them  ;    methinks,  everyone   that  has    but   the 


REGENERATION  59 

least  concern  for  the  salvation  of  his  precious 
and  immortal  soul,  having  such  promises,  such 
a  hope,  such  an  eternity  of  happiness  set  before 
him,  should  never  cease  watching,  praying,  and 
striving,  till  he  find  a  real,  inward  saving 
change  wrought  in  his  heart,  and  thereby  doth 
know  of  a  truth,  that  he  dwells  in  Christ,  and 
Christ  in  him  ;  that  he  is  a  new  creature, 
therefore  a  child  of  God  ;  that  he  is  already 
an  inheritor,  and  will  ere  long  be  an  actual 
possessor,  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven. — Which 
God  of  His  infinite  mercy  grant,  through  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord. 


Ill 

A    PENITENT    HEART    THE    BEST    NEW    YEAR'S 
GIFT 

'  Except  ye  repent,  ye  shall  all  likewise  perish.' — 
Luke  xiii.  3. 

When  we  consider  how  heinous  and  aggra- 
vating our  offences  are  in  the  sight  of  a  just 
and  holy  God,  that  they  bring  down  His  wrath 
upon  our  heads,  and  occasion  us  to  live  under 
His  indignation  ;  how  ought  we  thereby  to  be 
deterred  from  evil,  or  at  least  engaged  to  study 
to  repent  thereof,  and  not  commit  the  same 
again  !  But  man  is  so  thoughtless  of  an  eternal 
state,  and  has  so  little  consideration  of  the 
welfare  of  his  immortal  soul,  that  he  can  sin 
without  any  thought  that  he  must  give  an 
account  of  his  actions  at  the  day  of  judgment. 
Or  if  he,  at  times,  has  any  reflections  on  his 
behaviour,  they  do  not  drive  him  to  true  re- 
pentance. He  may,  for  a  short  time,  refrain 
from  falling  into  some  gross  sins  which  he  had 


A  PENITENT  HEART  6i 

lately  committed  ;  but  then,  when  the  tempta- 
tion comes  again  with  power,  he  is  carried 
away  with  the  lust  :  and  thus  he  goes  on 
promising  and  resolving,  and  in  breaking  both 
his  resolutions  and  his  promises,  as  fast  almost 
as  he  has  made  them.  This  is  highly  offensive 
to  God,  it  is  mocking  Him. 

My  brethren,  when  grace  is  given  us  to 
repent  truly,  we  shall  turn  wholly  unto  God  ; 
and  let  me  beseech  you  to  repent  of  your  sins, 
for  the  time  is  hastening  when  you  will  have 
neither  time  nor  call  to  repent ;  there  is  none 
in  the  grave,  whither  we  are  going ;  but  do 
not  be  afraid,  for  God  often  receives  the 
greatest  sinner  to  mercy  through  the  merits  of 
Christ  Jesus  ;  this  magnifies  the  riches  of  His 
free  grace  ;  and  should  be  an  encouragement 
for  you,  who  are  great  and  notorious  sinners, 
to  repent,  for  He  will  have  mercy  upon  you, 
if  you  through  Christ  return  unto  Him. 

St  Paul  was  an  eminent  instance  of  this  : 
he  speaks  of  himself  as  '  the  chief  of  sinners,' 
and  he  declares  how  God  showed  mercy  unto 
him.  Christ  loves  to  show  mercy  unto  sinners, 
and    if  you  repent.  He  will  have  mercy  upon 


62        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

you.      But  as  no  word  is  more  mistaken  than 
that  of  repentance,  I  shall, 

I.  Show  you  what  the  nature  of  repentance  is. 

II.  Consider  the  several  parts  and  causes 
of  repentance. 

III.  I  shall  give  you  some  reasons  why  re- 
pentance is  necessary  to  salvation.      And, 

IV.  Exhort  all  of  you,  high  and  low,  rich 
and  poor,  one  with  another,  to  endeavour  after 
repentance. 

I.  Repentance,  my  brethren,  in  the  first 
place,  as  to  its  nature,  is  the  carnal  and 
corrupt  disposition  of  men  being  changed  into 
a  renewed  and  sanctified  disposition.  A  man 
that  has  truly  repented,  is  truly  regenerated  : 
it  is  a  different  word  for  one  and  the  same 
thing  ;  the  motley  mixture  of  the  beast  and 
devil  is  gone :  there  is,  as  it  were,  a  new 
creation  wrought  in  your  hearts.  If  your  re- 
pentance is  true,  you  are  renewed  throughout, 
both  in  soul  and  body  ;  your  understandings 
are  enlightened  with  the  knowledge  of  God, 
and  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ;  and  your  wills, 
which   were  stubborn,  obstinate,  and  hated  all 


A  PENITENT  HEART  6;^ 

good,  are  obedient  and  conformable  to  the  will 
of  God.  Indeed,  our  deists  tell  us,  that  man 
now  has  a  free  will  to  do  good,  to  love  God, 
and  to  repent  when  he  will  :  but  indeed  there 
is  no  free  will  in  any  of  you,  but  to  sin  ;  nay, 
your  free  will  leads  you  so  far,  that  you  would, 
if  possible,  pull  God  from  His  throne. 

This  may,  perhaps,  offend  the  Pharisees  ; 
but  (it  is  the  truth  in  Christ  which  I  speak,  I 
lie  not)  every  man  by  his  own  natural  will  hates 
God  ;  but  when  he  is  turned  unto  the  Lord 
by  evangelical  repentance,  then  his  will  is 
changed  ;  then  your  consciences,  now  har- 
dened and  benumbed,  shall  be  quickened  and 
awakened  ;  then  your  hard  hearts  shall  be 
melted,  and  your  unruly  affections  shall  be 
crucified.  Thus,  by  that  repentance,  the 
whole  soul  will  be  changed,  you  will  have 
new  inclinations,  new  desires,  and  new  habits. 

You  may  see  how  vile  we  are  by  nature,  that 
it  requires  so  great  a  change  to  be  made  upon 
us,  to  recover  us  from  this  state  of  sin  ;  and 
therefore  the  consideration  of  our  dreadful  state 
should  make  us  earnest  with  God  to  change 
our  condition,  and  that  change  true  repentance 


64        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

implies.  Therefore,  my  brethren,  consider  how- 
hateful  your  ways  are  to  God,  while  you  con- 
tinue in  sin  ;  how  abominable  you  are  unto 
Him,  while  you  run  into  evil.  You  cannot  be 
said  to  be  Christians  while  you  are  hating 
Christ,  and  His  people.  True  repentance  will 
entirely  change  you,  the  bias  of  your  souls  will 
be  changed,  then  you  will  delight  in  God,  in 
Christ,  in  His  law,  and  in  His  people ;  you 
will  then  believe  that  there  is  such  a  thing  as 
inward  feeling,  though  now  you  may  esteem  it 
madness  and  enthusiasm  ;  you  will  not  then  be 
ashamed  of  becoming  fools  for  Christ's  sake ; 
you  will  not  regard  being  scoffed  at ;  it  is  not 
then  their  pointing  after  you  and  crying,  *  Here 
comes  another  troop  of  His  followers,'  will 
dismay  you  ;  no,  your  soul  will  abhor  such 
proceedings,  the  ways  of  Christ  and  His  people 
will  be  your  whole  delight. 

It  is  the  nature  of  such  repentance  to 
make  a  change,  and  the  greatest  change  that 
can  be  made  here  in  the  soul.  Thus  you  see 
what  repentance  implies  in  its  own  nature ; 
it  denotes  an  abhorrence  of  all  evil,  and  a 
forsaking  of  it.      I   shall  now  proceed. 


A  PENITENT  HEART  65 

II.  To  show  you  the  parts  of  it,  and  the 
causes  concurring  thereto. 

The  parts  are,  sorrow,  hatred,  and  an  entire 
forsaking  of  sin. 

Our  sorrow  and  grief  for  sin  must  not  spring 
merely  from  a  fear  of  wrath  ;  for  if  we  have 
no  other  ground  but  that,  it  proceeds  from 
self-love,  and  not  from  any  love  to  God  ;  and 
if  love  to  God  is  not  the  chief  motive  of  your 
repentance,  your  repentance  is  in  vain,  and  not 
to  be  esteemed  true. 

Many,  in  our  days,  think  their  crying,  God 
forgive  me  !  or,  Lord  have  mercy  upon  me  !  or 
I  am  sorry  for  it !  is  repentance,  and  that  God 
will  esteem  it  as  such  :  but  indeed  they  are 
mistaken  ;  it  is  not  the  drawing  near  to  God 
with  our  lips,  while  our  hearts  are  far  from 
Him,  which  He  regards.  Repentance  does  not 
come  by  fits  and  starts;  no,  it  is  one  continued 
act  of  our  lives  ;  for  as  we  daily  commit  sin,  so 
we  need  a  daily  repentance  before  God,  to 
obtain  forgiveness  for  those  sins  we  commit. 

It  is  not  your  confessing  yourselves  to  be 
sinners,  it  is  not  knowing  your  condition  to  be 
sad  and  deplorable,  so  long  as  you  continue  in 


66        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

your  sins  :  your  care  and  endeavours  should 
be,  to  get  the  heart  thoroughly  affected  there- 
with, that  you  may  feel  yourselves  to  be  lost 
and  undone  creatures,  for  Christ  came  to  save 
such  as  are  lost ;  and  if  you  are  enabled  to 
groan  under  the  weight  and  burden  of  your 
sins,  then  Christ  will  ease  you  and  give  you 
rest. 

And  till  you  are  thus  sensible  of  your  misery 
and  lost  condition,  you  are  a  servant  to  sin  and 
to  your  lusts,  under  the  bondage  and  command 
of  Satan,  doing  his  drudgery  :  thou  art  under 
the  curse  of  God,  and  liable  to  His  judgment. 
Consider  how  dreadful  thy  state  will  be  at 
death,  and  after  the  day  of  judgment,  when 
thou  wilt  be  exposed  to  such  miseries  which 
the  ear  hath  not  heard,  neither  can  the  heart 
conceive,  and  that  to  all  eternity,  if  you  die 
impenitent. 

But  I  hope  better  things  of  you,  my  brethren, 
though  I  thus  speak,  and  things  which  accom- 
pany salvation  ;  go  to  God  in  prayer,  and  be 
earnest  with  Him,  that  by  His  Spirit  He  would 
convince  you  of  your  miserable  condition  by 
nature,   and   make  you  truly  sensible  thereof. 


A  PENITENT  HEART  6^ 

Oh,  be  humbled,  be  humbled,  I  beseech  you, 
for  your  sins  !  Having  spent  so  many  years 
in  sinning,  what  canst  thou  do  less,  than  be 
concerned  to  spend  some  hours  in  mourning 
and  sorrowing  for  the  same,  and  be  humbled 
before  God  ? 

Look  back  into  your  lives,  call  to  mind  thy 
sins,  as  many  as  possibly  thou  canst,  the  sins 
of  thy  youth,  as  well  as  of  thy  riper  years  ;  see 
how  you  have  departed  from  a  gracious  Father, 
and  wandered  in  the  way  of  wickedness,  in 
which  you  have  lost  yourselves,  the  favour  of 
God,  the  comforts  of  His  Spirit,  and  the  peace 
of  your  consciences  ;  then  go  and  beg  pardon 
of  the  Lord,  through  the  blood  of  the  Lamb, 
for  the  evil  thou  hast  committed,  and  for  the 
good  thou  hast  omitted.  Consider,  likewise, 
the  heinousness  of  thy  sins ;  see  what  very 
aggravating  circumstances  thy  sins  are  attended 
with,  how  you  have  abused  the  patience  of 
God,  which  should  have  led  you  to  repentance  ; 
and  when  thou  findest  thy  heart  hard,  beg  of 
God  to  soften  it,  cry  mightily  unto  Him,  and 
He  will  take  away  thy  stony  heart,  and  give 
thee  a  heart  of  flesh. 


68        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Resolve  to  leave  all  thy  sinful  lusts  and 
pleasures ;  renounce,  forsake,  and  abhor  thy 
old  sinful  course  of  life,  and  serve  God  in 
holiness  and  righteousness  all  the  remaining 
part  of  life.  If  you  lament  and  bewail  past 
sins,  and  do  not  forsake  them,  your  repentance 
is  in  vain,  you  are  mocking  of  God,  and 
deceiving  your  own  soul  ;  you  must  put  off 
the  old  man,  with  his  deeds,  before  you  can 
put  on  the  new  man,  Christ  Jesus. 

You,  therefore,  who  have  been  swearers 
and  cursers,  you,  who  have  been  harlots  and 
drunkards,  you,  who  have  been  thieves  and 
robbers,  you,  who  have  hitherto  followed  the 
sinful  pleasures  and  diversions  of  life,  let  me 
beseech  you,  by  the  mercies  of  God  in  Christ 
Jesus,  that  you  would  no  longer  continue 
therein,  but  that  you  would  forsake  your  evil 
ways,  and  turn  unto  the  Lord,  for  He  waiteth 
to  be  gracious  unto  you.  He  is  ready.  He  is 
willing,  to  pardon  you  of  all  your  sins.  Do 
not  expect  Christ  to  pardon  you  of  sin,  when 
you  run  into  it,  and  will  not  abstain  from 
complying  with  the  temptations  ;  but,  if  you 
will   be   persuaded    to   abstain   from   evil   and 


A  PENITENT  HEART  69 

choose  the  good,  to  return  unto  the  Lord,  and 
repent  of  your  wickedness,  He  hath  promised 
He  will  abundantly  pardon  you.  He  will  heal 
your  backslidings,  and  will  love  you  freely. 

Resolve  now  this  day  to  have  done  with 
your  sins  for  ever  ;  let  your  old  ways  and  you 
be  separated  ;  you  must  resolve  against  it,  for 
there  can  be  no  true  repentance  without  a 
resolution  to  forsake  it.  Resolve  for  Christ, 
resolve  against  the  devil  and  his  works,  and  go 
on  fighting  the  Lord's  battles  against  the  devil 
and  his  emissaries  ;  attack  him  in  the  strongest 
holds  he  has,  fight  him  as  men,  as  Christians, 
and  you  will  soon  find  him  to  be  a  coward ; 
resist  him,  and  he  will  fly  from  you. 

Resolve,  through  grace,  to  do  this,  and  your 
repentance  is  half  done  :  but  then  take  care 
that  you  do  not  ground  your  resolutions  on 
your  own  strength,  but  in  the  strength  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  ;  He  is  the  way.  He  is  the 
truth,  and  He  is  the  life  ;  without  His  assistance 
you  can  do  nothing,  but  through  His  grace 
strengthening  thee  thou  wilt  be  enabled  to  do 
all  things  ;  and  the  more  thou  art  sensible  of 
thy    own    weakness    and    inability,    the    more 


70        WHITEFIELD^S  SERMONS 

ready  Christ  will  be  to  help  thee  ;  and  what 
can  all  the  men  of  the  world  do  to  thee  when 
Christ  is  for  thee  ?  Thou  wilt  not  regard  what 
they  say  against  thee,  for  thou  wilt  have  the 
testimony  of  a  good  conscience. 

Resolve  to  cast  thyself  at  the  feet  of  Christ 
in  subjection  to  Him,  and  throw  thyself  into 
the  arms  of  Christ  for  salvation  by  Him. 
Consider,  my  dear  brethren,  the  many  invita- 
tions He  has  given  you  to  come  unto  Him, 
to  be  saved  by  Him  ;  God  has  '  laid  on  Him 
the  iniquity  of  us  all.'  Oh,  let  me  prevail  with 
you,  above  all  things,  to  make  choice  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  resign  yourselves  unto  Him, 
take  Him,  oh,  take  Him  upon  His  own  terms  ; 
and  whosoever  thou  art,  how  great  a  sinner 
soever  thou  hast  been,  this  evening,  in  the 
name  of  the  great  God,  do  I  offer  Jesus  Christ 
unto  thee  ;  as  thou  valuest  thy  life  and  soul, 
refuse  Him  not,  but  stir  up  thyself  to  accept  of 
the  Lord  Jesus,  take  Him  wholly  as  He  is,  for 
He  will  be  applied  wholly  unto  you,  or  else 
not  at  all.  Jesus  Christ  must  be  your  whole 
wisdom,  Jesus  Christ  must  be  your  whole 
righteousness,     Jesus     Christ     must    be    your 


A  PENITENT  HEART  71 

whole    sanctification,    or    He    will     never    be 
your  eternal  redemption. 

What  though  you  have  been  ever  so  wicked 
and  profligate,  yet  if  you  will  now  abandon 
your  sins,  and  turn  unto  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
thou  shalt  have  Him  given  to  thee,  and  all  thy 
sins  shall  be  freely  forgiven.  Oh,  why  will  you  y 
neglect  the  great  work  of  your  repentance  ;  do 
not  defer  the  doing  of  it  one  day  longer,  but 
to-day,  even  now,  take  that  Christ  who  is  freely 
offered  to  you. 

Now,  as  to  the  causes  hereof,  the  first  cause 
is  God  ;  He  is  the  Author,  '  we  are  born  of 
God,'  God  hath  begotten  us,  even  God,  the 
Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ ;  it  is  He  that 
stirs  us  up  to  will  and  to  do  of  His  own  good 
pleasure  :  and  another  cause  is,  God's  free 
grace  ;  it  is  owing  to  the  '  riches  of  His  free 
grace,'  my  brethren,  that  we  have  been  pre- 
vented from  going  down  to  hell  long  ago  ;  it  is 
because  the  compassions  of  the  Lord  fail  not, 
they  are  new  every  morning,  and  fresh  every 
evening. 

Sometimes  the  instruments  are  very  unlikely : 
a  poor  despised  minister  or  member  of  Jesus 


72        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Christ  may,  by  the  power  of  God,  be  made  an 
instrument  in  the  hands  of  God  of  bringing 
you  to  true  evangelical  repentance  ;  and  this 
may  be  done  to  show  that  the  power  is  not  in 
men,  but  that  it  is  entirely  owing  to  the  good 
pleasure  of  God  ;  and  if  there  has  been  any 
good  done  among  any  of  you,  by  preaching 
the  Word,  as  I  trust  there  has,  though  it  were 
preached  in  a  field,  if  God  has  met  and  owned 
us,  and  blessed  His  Word,  though  preached  by 
an  enthusiastic  babbler,  a  boy,  a  madman  ;  I 
do  rejoice,  yea,  and  will  rejoice,  let  foes  say 
what  they  will.      I  shall  now, 

Thirdly^  Show  the  reasons  why  repentance 
is  necessary  to  salvation. 

And  this,  my  brethren,  is  plainly  revealed  to 
us  in  the  Word  of  God,  *  The  soul  that  does  not 
repent  and  turn  unto  the  Lord,  shall  die  in  its 
sins,  and  their  blood  shall  be  required  at  their 
own  hands.'  It  is  necessary,  as  we  have  sinned, 
we  should  repent :  for  a  holy  God  could  not, 
nor  ever  can,  or  will,  admit  anything  that  is 
unholy  into  His  presence  :  this  is  the  beginning 
of  grace  in  the  soul  ;  there  must  be  a  change 
in  heart  and  life,  before  there  can  be  a  dwelling 


A  PENITENT  HEART  73 

with  a  holy  God.  You  cannot  love  sin  and 
God  too,  you  cannot  love  God  and  Mammon  ; 
no  unclean  person  can  stand  in  the  presence 
of  God,  it  is  contrary  to  the  holiness  of  His 
nature  ;  there  is  a  contrariety  between  the  holy 
nature  of  God  and  the  unholy  nature  of  carnal 
and  unregenerate  men. 

What  communication  can  there  be  between 
a  sinless  God  and  creatures  full  of  sin,  between 
a  pure  God  and  impure  creatures  ?  If  you 
were  to  be  admitted  into  heaven,  with  your 
present  tempers,  in  your  impenitent  condition, 
heaven  itself  would  be  a  hell  to  you  ;  the  songs 
of  angels  would  be  as  enthusiasm,  and  would 
be  intolerable  to  you  ;  therefore  you  must  have 
these  tempers  changed,  you  must  be  holy  as 
God  is  :  He  must  be  your  God  here,  and  you 
must  be  His  people,  or  you  will  never  dwell 
together  to  all  eternity.  If  you  hate  the  ways 
of  God,  and  cannot  spend  an  hour  in  His 
service,  how  will  you  think  to  be  easy  to  all 
eternity,  in  singing  praises  to  Him  that  sits  upon 
the  throne,  and  to  the  Lamb  for  ever  ? 

And    this    is    to    be    the   employment,    my 
brethren,  of  all  those  who  are  admitted    into 


74        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

this  glorious  place,  where  neither  sin  nor  sinner 
is  admitted,  where  no  scoffer  ever  can  come, 
without  repentance  from  his  evil  ways,  a 
turning  unto  God,  and  a  cleaving  unto  Him. 
This  must  be  done  before  any  can  be  admitted 
into  the  glorious  mansions  of  God,  which  are 
prepared  for  all  that  love  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  in  sincerity  and  truth.  Repent  ye  then 
of  all  your  sins.  Oh,  that  it  were  in  my  power, 
I  would  place  all  of  you,  yea,  you  my  scoffing 
brethren,  and  the  greatest  enemy  I  have  on 
earth,  at  the  right  hand  of  Jesus  ;  but  this  I 
cannot  do  :  however,  I  advise  and  exhort  you, 
with  all  love  and  tenderness,  to  make  Jesus 
your  refuge  :  fly  to  Him  for  relief.  Jesus  died 
to  save  such  as  you  ;  He  is  full  of  compassion  ; 
and  if  you  go  to  Him,  as  poor,  lost,  undone 
sinners,  Jesus  will  give  you  His  Spirit ;  you 
shall  live  and  reign,  and  reign  and  live,  you 
shall  love  and  live,  and  live  and  love,  with  this 
Jesus  to  all  eternity. 

I  am,  Fourthly,  to  exhort  all  of  you,  high 
and  low,  rich  and  poor,  one  with  another,  to 
repent  of  all  your  sins,  and  turn  unto  the  Lord. 

And  I  shall  speak  to  each  of  you  ;  for  you 


A  PENITENT  HEART  75 

have  either  repented,  or  you  have  not,  you  are 
believers  in  Christ  Jesus,  or  unbelievers. 

And  first,  you  who  never  have  truly  repented 
of  your  sins,  and  never  have  truly  forsaken 
your  lusts,  be  not  offended  if  I  speak  plainly 
to  you  ;  for  it  is  love,  love  to  your  souls,  that 
constrains  me  to  speak  :  I  shall  lay  before  you 
your  danger,  and  the  misery  to  which  you  are 
exposed,  while  you  remain  impenitent  in  sin. 
And  oh,  that  this  may  be  a  means  of  making 
you  fly  to  Christ  for  pardon  and  forgiveness  ! 

While  thy  sins  are  not  repented  of,  thou  art 
in  danger  of  death  ;  and  if  you  should  die,  you 
would  perish  for  ever.  There  is  no  hope  of 
any  who  live  and  die  in  their  sins,  but  that 
they  will  dwell  with  devils  and  damned  spirits 
to  all  eternity.  And  how  do  we  know  we 
shall  live  much  longer?  we  are  not  sure  of 
seeing  our  own  habitations  this  night  in  safety. 
What  mean  ye,  then,  being  at  ease  and 
pleasure  while  your  sins  are  not  pardoned  ? 
As  sure  as  ever  the  Word  of  God  is  true,  if 
you  die  in  that  condition,  you  are  shut  out  of 
all  hope  and  mercy  for  ever,  and  shall  pass 
into  easeless  and  endless  misery. 


^e        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

What  are  all  thy  pleasures  and  diversions 
worth  ?  They  last  but  for  a  moment,  they  are 
of  no  worth,  and  but  of  short  continuance. 
And  sure  it  must  be  gross  folly,  eagerly  to 
pursue  those  sinful  lusts  and  pleasures,  which 
war  against  the  soul,  which  tend  to  harden  the 
heart,  and  keep  us  from  closing  with  the  Lord 
Jesus ;  indeed,  these  are  destructive  of  our 
peace  here  and,  without  repentance,  will  be  of 
our  peace  hereafter. 

O  the  folly  and  madness  of  this  sensual 
world  !  Sure  if  there  were  nothing  in  sin  but 
present  slavery,  it  would  keep  an  ingenuous 
spirit  from  it.  But  to  do  the  devil's  drudgery  ! 
And  if  we  do  that,  we  shall  have  his  wages, 
which  is  eternal  death  and  condemnation.  Oh, 
consider  this,  my  guilty  brethren,  you  that 
think  it  no  crime  to  swear,  to  drink,  or  to  scoff 
and  jeer  at  the  people  of  God  ;  consider  how 
your  voices  will  then  be  changed,  and  you, 
that  counted  their  lives  madness,  and  their  end 
without  honour,  shall  howl  and  lament  at  your 
own  madness  and  folly,  that  should  bring  you 
to  so  much  woe  and  distress  !  Then  you  will 
lament  and  bemoan   your  own   dreadful    con- 


A  PENITENT  HEART  ^^ 

dition  :  but  it  will  be  of  no  signification  ;  for 
He  that  is  now  your  merciful  Saviour  will  then 
become  your  inexorable  Judge.  Now  He  is 
easy  to  be  entreated  ;  but  then,  all  your  tears 
and  prayers  will  be  in  vain  :  for  God  hath 
allotted  to  every  man  a  day  of  grace,  a  time 
of  repentance,  which,  if  he  does  not  improve, 
but  neglects  and  despises  the  means  which  are 
offered  to  him,  he  cannot  be  saved. 

Consider,  therefore,  while  you  are  going  on 
in  a  course  of  sin  and  unrighteousness,  I 
beseech  you,  my  brethren,  to  think  of  the 
consequence  that  will  attend  your  thus  mis- 
spending your  precious  time  ;  your  souls  are 
worth  being  concerned  about :  for  if  you  can 
enjoy  all  the  pleasures  and  diversions  of  life, 
at  death  you  must  leave  them  ;  that  will  put 
an  end  to  all  your  worldly  concerns.  And 
will  it  not  be  very  deplorable,  to  have  your 
good  things  here,  all  your  earthly,  sensual, 
devilish  pleasures,  which  you  have  been  so 
much  taken  up  with,  all  over  ?  and  the  thought 
for  how  trifling  a  concern  thou  hast  lost  eternal 
welfare,  will  gnaw  thy  very  soul. 

Thy  wealth  and  grandeur  will  stand  in  no 


78        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

stead  ;  thou  canst  carry  nothing  of  them  into 
the  other  world  :  then  the  consideration  of  thy 
uncharitableness  to  the  poor,  and  the  ways 
thou  didst  take  to  obtain  thy  wealth,  will  be  a 
very  hell  unto  thee. 

Now  you  enjoy  the  means  of  grace,  as  the 
preaching  of  His  word,  prayer,  and  sacraments  ; 
and  God  has  sent  His  ministers  out  into  the 
fields  and  highways,  to  invite,  to  woo  you  to 
come  in.  But  they  are  tiresome  to  thee,  thou 
hadst  rather  be  at  thy  pleasures.  Ere  long, 
my  brethren,  they  will  be  over,  and  you  will 
be  no  more  troubled  with  them.  But  then 
thou  wouldest  give  ten  thousand  worlds  for 
one  moment  of  that  merciful  time  of  grace 
which  thou  hast  abused  ;  then  thou  wilt  cry 
for  a  drop  of  that  precious  blood  which  now 
you  trample  under  your  feet ;  then  you  will 
wish  for  one  more  offer  of  mercy,  for  Christ 
and  His  free  grace  to  be  offered  to  you  again  ; 
but  your  crying  will  be  in  vain  :  for  as  you 
would  not  repent  here,  God  will  not  give  you 
an  opportunity  to  repent  hereafter ;  if  you 
would  not  in  Christ's  time,  you  shall  not  in 
your  own. 


A  PENITENT  HEART  79 

In  what  a  dreadful  condition  will  you 
then  be?  What  horror  and  astonishment 
will  possess  your  souls  ?  Then  all  thy  lies 
and  oaths,  thy  scoffs  and  jeers,  at  the 
people  of  God,  all  thy  filthy  and  unclean 
thoughts  and  actions,  thy  misspent  time  in 
balls,  plays,  and  assemblies,  thy  spending 
whole  evenings  at  cards,  dice,  and  masquerades, 
thy  frequenting  of  taverns  and  alehouses, 
thy  worldliness,  covetousness,  and  thy  un- 
charitableness,  will  be  brought  at  once  to  thy 
remembrance,  and  at  once  charged  upon  thy 
guilty  soul  !  And  how  can  you  bear  the 
thoughts  of  these  things  ?  Indeed  I  am  full 
of  compassion  towards  you,  to  think  that 
this  should  be  the  portion  of  any  who  now 
hear  me.  These  are  truths,  though  awful 
ones  ;  my  brethren,  these  are  the  truths  of 
the  Gospel  ;  and  if  there  were  not  a  necessity 
for  thus  speaking,  I  would  willingly  forbear  : 
for  it  is  no  pleasing  subject  to  me,  any  more 
than  it  is  to  you  ;  but  it  is  my  duty  to  show 
you  the  dreadful  consequences  of  continuing 
in  sin.  I  am  only  now  acting  the  part  of  a 
skilful  surgeon,  that  searches  a  wound  before 

G 


8o        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

he  heals  it.  I  would  show  you  your  danger 
first,  that  deliverance  may  be  the  more  readily 
accepted  by  you. 

Consider,  that  however  you  may  be  for 
putting  the  evil  day  away  from  you,  and  are 
now  striving  to  hide  your  sins,  at  the  day 
of  judgment  there  shall  be  a  full  discovery 
of  all ;  hidden  things  on  that  day  shall  be 
brought  to  light ;  and  after  all  thy  sins  have 
been  revealed  to  the  whole  world,  then  you 
must  depart  into  everlasting  fire  in  hell,  which 
will  not  be  quenched  night  and  day  ;  it  will 
be  without  intermission,  without  end.  Oh, 
then,  what  stupidity  and  senselessness  hath 
possessed  your  hearts,  that  you  are  not  frighted 
from  your  sins  !  The  fear  of  Nebuchadnezzar's 
fiery  furnace  made  men  do  anything  to  avoid 
it  ;  and  shall  not  an  everlasting  fire  make 
men,  make  you,  do  anything  to  avoid  it  ? 

Oh,  that  this  would  awaken  and  cause  you 
to  humble  yourselves  for  your  sins,  and  to  beg 
pardon  for  them,  that  you  might  find  mercy 
in  the  Lord  ! 

Do  not  go  away,  let  not  the  devil  hurry 
you    away   before    the    sermon    is    over  ;    but 


A  PENITENT  HEART  81 

stay,  and  you  shall  have  Jesus  offered  to  you, 
who  has  made  full  satisfaction  for  all  your  sins. 

Let  me  beseech  you  to  cast  away  your 
transgressions,  to  strive  against  sin,  to  watch 
against  it,  and  to  beg  power  and  strength 
from  Christ,  to  keep  down  the  power  of  those 
lusts  that  hurry  you  on  in  your  sinful  ways. 

But  if  you  will  not  do  any  of  these  things, 
if  you  are  resolved  to  sin  on,  you  must  expect 
eternal  death  to  be  the  consequence  ;  you 
must  expect  to  be  seized  with  horror  and 
trembling,  with  horror  and  amazement,  to 
hear  the  dreadful  sentence  of  condemnation 
pronounced  against  you  :  and  then  you  will 
run,  and  call  upon  the  mountains  to  fall  on 
you,  to  hide  you  from  the  Lord,  and  from  the 
fierce  anger  of  His  wrath. 

Had  you  now  a  heart  to  turn  from  your 
sins  unto  the  living  God,  by  true  and  unfeigned 
repentance,  and  to  pray  unto  Him  for  mercy, 
in  and  through  the  merits  of  Jesus  Christ,  there 
were  hope.  But  at  the  day  of  judgment  thy 
prayers  and  tears  will  be  of  no  signification  ; 
they  will  be  of  no  service  to  thee  ;  the  Judge 
will  not  be  entreated  by  thee  :  as  you  would 


82        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

not  hearken  to  Him  when  He  called  unto 
thee,  but  despised  both  Him  and  His  ministers, 
and  would  not  leave  your  iniquities ;  therefore, 
on  that  day  He  will  not  be  entreated,  not- 
withstanding all  thy  cries  and  tears  ;  for  God 
Himself  hath  said,  *  Because  I  have  called,  and 
you  refused  ;  I  have  stretched  out  My  hand, 
and  no  man  regarded,  but  ye  have  set  at 
nought  all  My  counsel,  and  would  have  none 
of  My  reproof ;  I  will  also  laugh  at  your 
calamity,  and  mock  when  your  fear  cometh 
as  desolation,  and  your  destruction  cometh 
as  a  whirlwind  ;  when  distress  and  anguish 
cometh  upon  you  :  then  shall  they  call  upon 
Me,  but  I  will  not  answer,  they  shall  seek  Me 
early,  but  they  shall  not  find  Me.' 

Now,  you  may  call  this  enthusiasm  and 
madness  ;  but  at  that  great  day,  if  you  repent 
not  of  your  sins  here,  you  will  find,  by  woeful 
experience,  that  your  own  ways  were  madness 
indeed  ;  but  God  forbid  it  should  be  left 
undone  till  then  !  seek  after  the  Lord  while 
He  is  to  be  found  ;  call  upon  Him  while  He 
is  near,  and  you  shall  find  mercy  ;  repent  this 
hour,  and  Christ  will  joyfully  receive  you. 


A  PENITENT  HEART  83 

What  say  you  ?  Must  I  go  to  my  Master, 
and  tell  Him  you  will  not  come  unto  Him, 
and  will  have  none  of  His  counsels  ?  No ; 
do  not  send  me  on  so  unhappy  an  errand  : 
I  cannot,  I  will  not  tell  Him  any  such  thing. 
Shall  not  I  rather  tell  Him  you  are  willing  to 
repent  and  to  be  converted,  to  become  new 
men,  and  take  up  a  new  course  of  life  ?  This 
is  the  only  wise  resolution  you  can  make. 
Let  me  tell  my  Master  that  you  will  come 
unto  and  will  wait  upon  Him  :  for  if  you  do 
not,  it  will  be  your  ruin  in  time,  and  to 
eternity. 

You  will  at  death  wish  you  had  lived  the 
life  of  the  righteous,  that  you  might  have  died 
his  death.  Be  advised,  then ;  consider  what 
is  before  you,  Christ  and  the  world,  holiness 
and  sin,  life  and  death  :  choose  now  for  your- 
selves ;  let  your  choice  be  made  immediately, 
and  let  that  choice  be  your  dying  choice. 

If  you  would  not  choose  to  die  in  your 
sins,  to  die  drunkards,  to  die  adulterers,  to 
die  swearers  and  scoffers,  live  not  out  this 
night  in  the  dreadful  condition  you  are  in. 
Some  of  you,  it  may  be,  may  say.  You  have 


84        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

not  power,  you  have  no  strength  :  but  have 
not  you  been  wanting  to  yourselves  in  such 
things  that  were  within  your  power?  Have 
you  not  as  much  power  to  go  to  hear  a 
sermon,  as  to  go  into  a  playhouse,  or  to  a 
ball,  or  masquerade  ?  You  have  as  much 
power  to  read  the  Bible,  as  to  read  plays, 
novels,  and  romances  ;  and  you  can  associate 
as  well  with  the  godly,  as  with  the  wicked 
and  profane.  This  is  but  an  idle  excuse, 
my  brethren,  to  go  on  in  your  sins  ;  and  if 
you  will  be  found  in  the  means  of  grace, 
Christ  hath  promised  He  will  give  you  strength. 
While  Peter  was  preaching,  the  Holy  Ghost 
fell  on  all  that  heard  the  word  :  how  then 
should  you  be  found  in  the  way  of  your  duty  ! 
Jesus  Christ  will  then  give  thee  strength  ;  He 
will  put  His  Spirit  within  thee ;  thou  shalt 
find  He  will  be  thy  wisdom,  thy  righteousness, 
thy  sanctification,  and  thy  redemption.  Do 
but  try  what  a  gracious,  a  kind,  and  loving 
Master  He  is,  He  will  be  a  help  to  thee  in 
all  thy  burdens  :  and  if  the  burden  of  sin 
be  on  thy  soul,  go  to  Him  as  weary  and 
heavy  laden,  and  thou  shalt  find   rest. 


A  PENITENT  HEART  85 

Do  not  say,  that  your  sins  are  too  many  and 
too  great  to  expect  to  find  mercy.  No  ;  be 
they  ever  so  many,  or  ever  so  great,  the  blood 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  will  cleanse  you  from 
all  sins.  God's  grace,  my  brethren,  is  free, 
rich,  and  sovereign.  Manasseh  was  a  great 
sinner,  and  yet  he  was  pardoned  ;  Zacchaeus 
was  gone  far  from  God,  and  went  out  to  see 
Christ,  with  no  other  view  but  to  satisfy  his 
curiosity ;  and  yet  Jesus  met  him,  and  brought 
salvation  to  his  house.  Manasseh  was  an 
idolater  and  murderer,  yet  he  received  mercy  ; 
the  other  was  an  oppressor  and  extortioner, 
who  had  gotten  riches  by  fraud  and  deceit, 
and  by  grinding  the  faces  of  the  poor  :  so  did 
Matthew  too  ;  and  yet  they  found  mercy. 

Have  you  been  blasphemers  and  persecutors 
of  the  saints  and  servants  of  God  ?  So  was 
St  Paul,  yet  he  received  mercy.  Have  you 
been  common  harlots,  filthy  and  unclean 
persons?  So  was  Mary  Magdalene,  and  yet 
she  received  mercy.  Hast  thou  been  a  thief? 
The  thief  upon  the  cross  found  mercy.  I 
despair  of  none  of  you,  however  vile  and 
profligate   you    have   been  ;     I    say,    I    despair 


86        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

of  none  of  you,  especially  when  God  has  had 
mercy  on  such  a  wretch  as  I  am. 

Remember  the  poor  Publican,  how  he  found 
favour  with  God,  when  the  proud,  self- conceited 
Pharisee,  who,  puffed  up  with  his  own  righteous- 
ness, was  rejected.  And  if  you  will  go  to  Jesus, 
as  the  poor  Publican  did,  under  a  sense  of  your 
own  unworthiness,  you  shall  find  favour  as  he 
did  :  there  is  virtue  enough  in  the  blood  of 
Jesus  to  pardon  greater  sinners  than  He  has 
yet  pardoned.  Then  be  not  discouraged,  but 
come  unto  Jesus,  and  you  will  find  Him  ready 
to  help  in  all  thy  distresses,  to  lead  thee  into 
all  truth,  to  bring  thee  from  darkness  to  light, 
and  from  the  power  of  Satan  unto  God. 

Do  not  let  the  devil  deceive  you,  by  telling 
you,  that  then  all  your  delights  and  pleasures 
will  be  over.  No  ;  this  is  so  far  from  depriving 
you  of  all  pleasure,  that  it  is  an  inlet  unto 
unspeakable  delights,  peculiar  to  all  who  are 
truly  regenerated.  The  new  birth  is  the  very 
beginning  of  a  life  of  peace  and  comfort ;  and 
the  greatest  pleasantness  is  to  be  found  in  the 
ways  of  holiness.  Solomon,  who  had  ex- 
perience of  all  other  pleasures,  yet  saith  of  the 


A  PENITENT  HEART  87 

ways  of  godliness,  '  That  all  her  ways  are 
ways  of  pleasantness,  and  all  her  paths  are 
paths  of  peace.'  Then  sure  you  will  not  let 
the  devil  deceive  you  ;  it  is  all  he  wants,  it  is 
that  he  aims  at,  to  make  religion  appear  to  be 
melancholy,  miserable,  and  enthusiastic :  but 
let  him  say  what  he  will,  give  not  ear  to  him, 
regard  him  not,  for  he  always  was  and  will  be 
a  liar. 

What  words,  what  entreaties,  shall  I  use,  to 
make  you  come  unto  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ? 
The  little  love  I  have  experienced  since  I  have 
been  brought  from  sin  to  God,  is  so  great,  that 
I  would  not  be  in  a  natural  state  for  ten 
thousand  worlds  ;  and  what  I  have  felt  is 
but  little  to  what  I  hope  to  feel  ;  but  that 
little  love  which  I  have  experienced,  is  a 
sufficient  buoy  against  all  the  storms  and 
tempests  of  this  boisterous  world  :  and  let  men 
and  devils  do  their  worst,  I  rejoice  in  the 
Lord  Jesus,  yea,  and  I  will  rejoice. 

And  oh,  if  you  repent  and  come  to  Jesus,  I 
would  rejoice  on  your  accounts  too  ;  and  we 
should  rejoice  together  to  all  eternity,  when 
once  passed  on  the  other  side  of  the   grave. 


88        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Oh,  come  to  Jesus  !  The  arms  of  Jesus  Christ 
will  embrace  you  ;  He  will  wash  away  all  your 
sins  in  His  blood,  and  will  love  you  freely. 

Come,  I  beseech  you  to  come,  unto  Jesus 
Christ !  Oh,  that  my  words  would  pierce  to  the 
very  soul !  Oh,  that  Jesus  Christ  was  formed 
in  you  !  Oh,  that  you  would  turn  to  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  that  He  might  have  mercy  upon 
you  ! 

I  would  speak  till  midnight,  yea,  I  would 
speak  till  I  could  speak  no  more,  so  it  might 
be  a  means  to  bring  you  to  Jesus.  Let  the 
Lord  Jesus  but  enter  your  souls,  and  you  shall 
find  peace  which  the  world  can  neither  give 
nor  take  away.  There  is  mercy  for  the  greatest 
sinner  amongst  you ;  go  unto  the  Lord  as 
sinners,  helpless  and  undone  without  it,  and 
then  you  shall  find  comfort  in  your  souls,  and 
be  admitted  at  last  amongst  those  who  sing 
praises  unto  the  Lord  to  all  eternity. 

Now,  my  brethren,  let  me  speak  a  word  of 
exhortation  to  those  of  you  who  are  already 
brought  to  the  Lord  Jesus,  who  are  born  again, 
who  do  belong  to  God,  to  whom  it  has  been 
given  to  repent  of  your  sins,  and  are  cleansed 


A  PENITENT  HEART  89 

from  their  guilt ;  and  that  is,  Be  thankful  to 
God  for  His  mercies  towards  you.  Oh,  admire 
the  grace  of  God,  and  bless  His  name  for  ever! 
Are  you  made  alive  in  Christ  Jesus  ?  Is  the 
life  of  God  begun  in  your  souls,  and  have  you 
the  evidence  thereof?  Be  thankful  for  this 
unspeakable  mercy  to  you  :  never  forget  to 
speak  of  His  mercy.  And  as  your  life  was 
formerly  devoted  to  sin,  and  to  the  pleasures  of 
this  world,  let  it  now  be  spent  wholly  in  the 
ways  of  God;  and  oh,  embrace  every  opportunity 
of  doing  and  of  receiving  good.  Whatsoever 
opportunity  you  have,  do  it  vigorously,  do  it 
speedily,  do  not  defer  it.  If  thou  seest  one 
hurrying  on  to  destruction,  use  the  utmost  of 
thy  endeavour  to  stop  him  in  his  course  ;  show 
him  the  need  he  has  of  repentance,  and  that 
without  it  he  is  lost  for  ever  ;  do  not  regard  his 
despising  of  you  ;  still  go  on  to  show  him  his 
danger  :  and  if  thy  friends  mock  and  despise, 
do  not  let  that  discourage  you  ;  hold  on,  hold 
out  to  the  end,  so  you  shall  have  a  crown 
which  is  immutable,  and  that  fadeth  not 
away. 

Let  the  love  of  Jesus  to  you,  keep  you  also 


90        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

humble  ;  do  not  be  high-minded,  keep  close 
unto  the  Lord,  observe  the  rules  which  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  has  given  in  His  Word,  and 
let  not  the  instructions  be  lost  which  you  are 
capable  of  giving.  Oh,  consider  what  reason 
you  have  to  be  thankful  to  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  for  giving  you  that  repentance  you 
yourselves  had  need  of;  a  repentance  which 
worketh  by  love.  Now  you  find  more  pleasure 
in  walking  with  God  one  hour,  than  in  all  your 
former  carnal  delights,  and  all  the  pleasures  of 
sin.  Oh,  the  joy  you  feel  in  your  own  souls, 
which  all  the  men  of  this  world,  and  all  the 
devils  in  hell,  though  they  were  to  combine 
together,  could  not  destroy.  Then  fear  not 
their  wrath  or  malice,  for  through  many 
tribulations  we  must  enter  into  glory. 

A  few  days,  or  weeks,  or  years  more,  and 
then  you  will  be  beyond  their  reach,  you  will 
be  in  the  Heavenly  Jerusalem  ;  there  is  all 
harmony  and  love,  there  is  all  joy  and  delight ; 
there  the  weary  soul  is  at  rest. 

Now  we  have  many  enemies,  but  at  death 
they  are  all  lost ;  they  cannot  follow  us  beyond 
the  grave  :  and  this  is  a  great  encouragement 


A  PENITENT  HEART  91 

to  us  not  to  regard  the  scoffs  and  jeers  of  the 
men  of  this  world. 

Oh,  let  the  love  of  Jesus  be  in  your  thoughts 
continually  !  It  was  His  dying  that  brought 
you  life  ;  it  was  His  crucifixion  that  paid  the 
satisfaction  for  your  sins ;  His  death,  burial,  and 
resurrection  that  completed  the  work  ;  and  He 
is  now  in  heaven,  interceding  for  you  at  the 
right  hand  of  His  Father.  And  can  you  do 
too  much  for  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  has 
done  so  much  for  you  ?  His  love  to  you  is 
unfathomable.  O  the  height,  the  depth,  the 
length  and  breadth,  of  this  love,  that  brought 
the  King  of  Glory  from  His  throne,  to  die  for 
such  rebels  as  we  are,  when  we  had  acted  so 
unkindly  against  Him,  and  deserved  nothing 
but  eternal  damnation.  He  came  down  and  took 
our  nature  upon  Him  ;  He  was  made  flesh, 
and  dwelt  among  us.  He  was  put  to  death  on 
our  account ;  He  paid  our  ransom.  Surely  this 
should  make  us  love  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ ; 
should  make  us  rejoice  in  Him,  and  not  do  as  too 
many  do,  and  as  we  ourselves  have  too  often, 
crucify  this  Jesus  afresh.  Let  us  do  all  we  can, 
my  dear  brethren,  to  honour  Him. 


92        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Come,  all  of  you,  come,  and  behold  Him 
stretched  out  for  you  ;  see  His  hands  and  feet 
nailed  to  the  Cross.  Oh,  come,  come,  my  brethren, 
and  nail  your  sins  thereto  ;  come,  come  and  see 
His  side  pierced.  There  is  a  fountain  open  for 
sin,  and  for  uncleanness  ;  oh,  wash,  wash,  and  be 
clean.  Come  and  see  His  head  crowned  with 
thorns,  and  all  for  you.  Can  you  think  of  a 
panting,  bleeding,  dying  Jesus,  and  not  be  filled 
with  pity  towards  Him  ?  He  underwent  all 
this  for  you.  Come  unto  Him  by  faith  ;  lay 
hold  on  Him  ;  there  is  mercy  for  every  soul  of 
you  that  will  come  unto  Him.  Then  do  not 
delay  ;  fly  unto  the  arms  of  this  Jesus,  and  you 
shall  be  made  clean  in   His  blood. 

Oh,  what  shall  I  say  unto  you,  to  make  you 
come  to  Jesus?  I  have  showed  you  the 
dreadful  consequence  of  not  repenting  of  your 
sins ;  and  if,  after  all  I  have  said,  you  are 
resolved  to  persist,  your  blood  will  be  required 
at  your  own  hands.  But  I  hope  better  things 
of  you,  and  things  that  accompany  salvation. 
Let  me  beg  of  you  to  pray  in  good  earnest  for 
the  grace  of  repentance.  I  may  never  see 
your  faces  again  ;  but  at  the  day  of  judgment 


A  PENITENT  HEART  93 

I  will  meet  you.  There  you  will  either  bless 
God  that  ever  you  were  moved  to  repentance  ; 
or  else  this  sermon,  though  in  a  field,  will  be  as 
a  swift  witness  against  you.  Repent,  repent, 
therefore,  my  dear  brethren,  as  John  the  Baptist, 
and  our  blessed  Redeemer  Himself  earnestly 
exhorted,  and  turn  from  your  evil  ways,  and 
the  Lord  will  have  mercy  on  you. 

Show  them,  O  Father,  wherein  they  have 
offended  Thee  ;  make  them  to  see  their  own 
vileness,  and  that  they  are  lost  and  undone 
without  true  repentance  ;  and  oh,  give  them 
that  repentance,  we  beseech  of  Thee,  that  they 
may  turn  from  sin  unto  Thee,  the  living  and 
true  God.  These  things,  and  whatever  else 
Thou  seest  needful  for  us,  we  entreat  that  Thou 
wouldest  bestow  upon  us,  on  account  of  what 
the  dear  Jesus  Christ  has  done  and  suffered  ; 
to  whom,  with  Thyself  and  Holy  Spirit,  three 
Persons,  and  one  God,  be  ascribed,  as  is  most 
due,  all  power,  glory,  might,  majesty,  and 
dominion,  now,  henceforth,  and  for  evermore. 
Ame7i. 


IV 

THE    ALMOST    CHRISTIAN 

'Almost   thou   persuadest   me   to    be    a   Christian.' — Acts 
xxvi.  28. 

V  These  words  contain  the  ingenuous  confession 

of  King  Agrippa,  which  having  some  reference 
to,  it  may  not  be  improper  to  relate  the  sub- 
stance of  the  preceding  verses,  with  which  the 
words  are  so  closely  connected. 

The  chapter  out  of  which  the  text  is  taken, 
contains  an  admirable  account  which  the  great 
St  Paul  gave  of  his  wonderful  conversion  from 
Judaism  to  Christianity,  when  he  was  called 
to  make  his  defence  before  Festus,  a  Gentile 
governor,  and  King  Agrippa.  Our  blessed 
Lord  had  long  since  foretold,  that  when  the 
Son  of  Man  should  be  lifted  up,  '  His  disciples 
should  be  brought  before  kings  and  rulers, 
for  His  name's  sake,  for  a  testimony  unto 
them.'  And  very  good  was  the  design  of 
Infinite   Wisdom    in    thus   ordaining   it.      For 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN        95 

Christianity  being,  from  the  beginning,  a 
doctrine  of  the  Cross,  the  princes  and  rulers 
of  the  earth  thought  themselves  too  high  to 
be  instructed  by  such  mean  teachers,  or  too 
happy  to  be  disturbed  by  such  unwelcome 
truths ;  and  therefore  would  have  always 
continued  strangers  to  Jesus  Christ  and  Him 
crucified,  had  not  the  apostles,  by  being 
arraigned  before  them,  gained  opportunities 
of  preaching  to  them  '  Jesus  and  the  resur- 
rection.' 

St  Paul  knew  full  well  that  this  was  the 
main  reason  why  his  blessed  Master  permitted 
his  enemies  at  this  time  to  arraign  him  at  a 
public  bar ;  and  therefore,  in  compliance  with 
the  divine  will,  thinks  it  not  sufficient,  barely 
to  make  his  defence,  but  endeavours  at  the 
same  time  to  convert  his  judges.  And  this 
he  did  with  such  demonstration  of  the  Spirit 
and  of  power,  that  Festus,  unwilling  to  be 
convinced  by  the  strongest  evidence,  cries  out 
with  a  loud  voice,  '  Paul,  much  learning  doth 
make  thee  mad.'  To  which  the  brave  apostle 
(like  a  true  follower  of  the  holy  Jesus)  meekly 
replies,  '  I   am  not  mad,  most   noble    Festus, 

H 


g6        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

but  speak  forth  the  words  of  truth  and 
soberness.' 

But  in  all  probability,  seeing  King  Agrippa 
more  affected  with  his  discourse,  and  observing 
in  him  an  inclination  to  know  the  truth,  he 
applies  himself  more  particularly  to  him. 
'  The  king  knoweth  of  these  things  ;  before 
whom  also  I  speak  freely,  for  I  am  persuaded 
that  none  of  these  things  are  hidden  from 
him.'  And  then,  that  if  possible  he  might 
complete  his  wished-for  conversion,  he,  with 
an  inimitable  strain  of  oratory,  addressed 
himself  still  more  closely,  '  King  Agrippa, 
believest  thou  the  prophets  ?  I  know  that 
thou  believest  them.'  At  which  the  passions 
of  the  king  began  to  work  so  strongly,  that 
he  was  obliged  in  open  court  to  own  himself 
affected  by  the  prisoner's  preaching,  and 
ingenuously  to  cry  out,  '  Paul,  almost  thou 
persuadest  me  to  be  a  Christian.' 

Which  words,  taken  with  the  context, 
afford  us  a  lively  representation  of  the 
different  reception  which  the  doctrine  of 
Christ's  ministers,  who  come  in  the  power 
and  spirit  of  St  Paul,  meets  with    nowadays 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN        97 

in  the  minds  of  men.  For  notwithstanding 
they,  like  this  great  apostle,  '  speak  forth  the 
words  of  truth  and  soberness,'  and  with  such 
energy  and  power  that  all  their  adversaries 
cannot  justly  gainsay  or  resist  ;  yet,  too 
many,  with  the  noble  Festus  before  mentioned, 
being,  like  him,  either  too  proud  to  be  taught, 
or  too  sensual,  too  careless,  or  too  worldly- 
minded  to  live  up  to  the  doctrine,  in  order  to 
excuse  themselves,  cry  out,  that  '  much  learning 
(much  study,  or,  what  is  more  unaccountable), 
much  piety  hath  made  them  mad.'  And 
though,  blessed  be  God  !  all  do  not  thus  dis- 
believe our  report,  yet  amongst  those  who 
gladly  receive  the  Word,  and  confess  that  we 
speak  the  words  of  truth  and  soberness,  there 
are  so  few  who  arrive  at  any  higher  degree  of 
piety  than  that  of  Agrippa,  or  are  any  farther 
persuaded  than  to  be  almost  Christians,  that  I 
cannot  but  think  it  highly  necessary  to  warn 
my  dear  hearers  of  the  danger  of  such  a  state. 
And  therefore,  from  the  words  of  the  text, 
shall  endeavour  to  show  these  three  things  : 
Firs^,  What  is  meant  by  an  almost  Chris- 
tian. 


98        WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Secondly,  What  are  the  chief  reasons  why 
so  many  are  no  more  than  almost  Christians. 

Thirdly,  I  shall  consider  the  ineffectualness, 
danger,  absurdity,  and  uneasiness  which  attends 
those  who  are  but  almost  Christians  ;  and  then 
conclude  with  a  general  exhortation,  to  set  all 
upon  striving  not  only  to  be  almost,  but 
altogether  Christians. 

I.  And,  First,  I  am  to  consider  what  is 
meant  by  an  almost  Christian. 

An  almost  Christian,  if  we  consider  him  in 
respect  to  his  duty  to  God,  is  one  that  halts 
between  two  opinions  ;  that  wavers  between 
Christ  and  the  world  ;  that  would  reconcile 
God  and  Mammon,  light  and  darkness,  Christ 
and  Belial.  It  is  true,  he  has  an  inclination  to 
religion,  but  then  he  is  very  cautious  how  he 
goes  too  far  in  it  :  his  false  heart  is  always 
crying  out,  Spare  thyself,  do  thyself  no  harm. 
He  prays,  indeed,  that  '  God's  will  may  be 
done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven.'  But  not- 
withstanding, he  is  very  partial  in  his  obedience, 
and  fondly  hopes  that  God  will  not  be  extreme 
to     mark     everything    that    he    wilfully    does 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN        99 

amiss ;  though  an  inspired  apostle  has  told 
him,  that  '  he  who  offends  in  one  point  is  guilty 
of  all.'  But  chiefly,  he  is  one  that  depends 
much  on  outward  ordinances,  and  on  that 
account  looks  upon  himself  as  righteous,  and 
despises  others  ;  though  at  the  same  time  he 
is  as  great  a  stranger  to  the  divine  life  as  any 
other  person  whatsoever.  In  short,  he  is  fond 
of  the  form,  but  never  experiences  the  power 
of  godliness  in  his  heart.  He  goes  on  year 
after  year,  attending  on  the  means  of  grace, 
but  then,  like  Pharaoh's  lean  kine,  he  is  never 
the  better,  but  rather  the  worse  for  them. 

If  you  consider  him  in  respect  to  his 
neighbour,  he  is  one  that  is  strictly  just 
to  all ;  but  then  this  does  not  proceed  from 
any  love  to  God  or  regard  to  man,  but  only 
through  a  principle  of  self-love  :  because  he 
knows  dishonesty  will  spoil  his  reputation, 
and  consequently  hinder  his  thriving  in  the 
world. 

He  is  one  that  depends  much  upon  being 
negatively  good,  and  contents  himself  with  the 
consciousness  of  having  done  no  one  any  harm  ; 
though    he    reads     in    the    Gospel,    that    'the 


loo      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

unprofitable  servant  was  cast  into  outer  dark- 
ness,' and  the  barren  fig-tree  was  cursed  and 
dried  up  from  the  roots,  not  for  bearing  bad, 
but  no  fruit. 

He  is  no  enemy  to  charitable  contributions 
in  public,  if  not  too  frequently  recommended  : 
but  then  he  is  unacquainted  with  the  kind 
offices  of  visiting  the  sick  and  imprisoned, 
clothing  the  naked,  and  relieving  the  hungry 
in  a  private  manner.  He  thinks  that  these 
things  belong  only  to  the  clergy,  though  his 
own  false  heart  tells  him,  that  nothing  but 
pride  keeps  him  from  exercising  these  acts  of 
humility;  and  that  Jesus  Christ,  in  the  25th 
chapter  of  St  Matthew,  condemns  persons  to 
everlasting  punishment,  not  merely  for  being 
fornicators,  drunkards,  or  extortioners,  but  for 
neglecting  these  charitable  offices  :  '  When  the 
Son  of  Man  shall  come  in  His  glory.  He  shall 
set  the  sheep  on  His  right  hand,  but  the  goats 
on  the  left.  Then  shall  He  say  unto  them 
on  the  left  hand.  Depart  from  Me,  ye  cursed, 
into  everlasting  fire,  prepared  for  the  devil  and 
his  angels :  for  I  was  an  hungered,  and  ye 
gave  Me  no  meat ;  I  was  thirsty,  and  ye  gave 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      loi 

Me  no  drink  ;  I  was  a  stranger,  and  ye  took 
Me  not  in ;  naked,  and  ye  clothed  Me  not  ; 
sick,  and  in  prison,  and  ye  visited  Me  not. 
Then  shall  they  also  answer  Him,  saying. 
Lord,  when  saw  we  Thee  an  hungered,  or 
athirst,  or  a  stranger,  or  naked,  or  sick,  or  in 
prison,  and  did  not  minister  unto  Thee  ?  Then 
shall  He  answer  them,  saying.  Verily,  I  say  unto 
you,  Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  not  to  one  of  the 
least  of  these,  ye  did  it  not  to  Me.  And  these 
shall  go  away  into  everlasting  punishment'  I 
thought  proper  to  give  you  this  whole  passage 
of  Scripture  at  large,  because  our  Saviour  lays 
such  a  particular  stress  upon  it;  and  yet  it  is 
so  little  regarded,  that  were  we  to  judge  by  the 
practice  of  Christians,  one  should  be  tempted 
to  think  there  were  no  such  verses  in  the 
Bible. 

But  to  proceed  to  the  character  of  an  almost 
Christian  : — If  we  consider  him  in  respect  of 
himself,  as  we  said,  he  was  strictly  honest  to 
his  neighbour,  so  he  is  likewise  strictly  sober  in 
himself:  but  then  both  his  honesty  and 
sobriety  proceed  from  the  same  principle  of  a 
false  self-love.      It  is  true,  he  runs  not  into  the 


io2      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

same  excess  of  riot  with  other  men  ;  but  then 
it  is  not  out  of  obedience  to  the  laws  of  God, 
but  either  because  his  constitution  will  not 
away  with  intemperance  ;  or  rather  because  he 
is  cautious  of  forfeiting  his  reputation,  or  un- 
fitting himself  for  temporal  business.  But 
though  he  is  so  prudent  as  to  avoid  intemper- 
ance and  excess,  for  the  reasons  before  men- 
tioned; yet  he  always  goes  to  the  extremity  of 
what  is  lawful.  It  is  true,  he  is  no  drunkard  ; 
but  then  he  has  no  Christian  self-denial.  He 
cannot  think  our  Saviour  to  be  so  austere  a 
Master,  as  to  deny  us  to  indulge  ourselves  in 
some  particulars  :  and  so  by  this  means  he  is 
destitute  of  a  sense  of  true  religion,  as  much 
as  if  he  lived  in  debauchery,  or  any  other 
crime  whatever.  As  to  settling  his  principles 
as  well  as  practice,  he  is  guided  more  by  the 
world  than  by  the  Word  of  God  :  for  his  part, 
he  cannot  think  the  way  to  heaven  so  narrow 
as  some  would  make  it ;  and  therefore  con- 
siders not  so  much  what  Scripture  requires,  as 
what  such  and  such  a  good  man  does,  or  what 
will  best  suit  his  own  corrupt  inclinations. 
Upon  this  account  he  is  not  only  very  cautious 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      103 

himself,  but  likewise  very  careful  of  young 
converts,  whose  faces  are  set  heavenward  ;  and 
therefore  is  always  acting  the  devil's  part,  and 
bidding  them  spare  themselves,  though  they 
are  doing  no  more  than  what  the  Scripture 
strictly  requires  them  to  do  :  the  consequence 
of  which  is,  that  he  suffers  not  himself  to  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  those  that  are 
entering  in  he  hinders. 

Thus  lives  the  almost  Christian  :  not  that  I 
can  say  I  have  fully  described  him  to  you  ;  but 
from  these  outlines  and  sketches  of  his  char- 
acter, if  your  consciences  have  done  their  proper 
office,  and  made  a  particular  application  of 
what  has  been  said  to  your  own  hearts,  I  cannot 
but  fear  that  some  of  you  may  observe  some 
features  in  his  picture,  odious  as  it  is,  too 
nearly  resembling  your  own  ;  and  therefore  I 
cannot  but  hope  that  you  will  join  with  the 
apostle  in  the  words  immediately  following  the 
text,  and  wish  yourselves  '  to  be  not  only 
almost,  but  altogether  Christians.' 

II.  I  proceed  to  the  second  general  thing 
proposed  :  to  consider  the  reason  why  so  many 
are  no  more  than  almost  Christians. 


104      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

I.  And  the  first  reason  I  shall  mention  is, 
because  so  many  set  out  with  false  notions  of 
religion ;  though  they  live  in  a  Christian 
country,  yet  they  know  not  what  Christianity 
is.  This  perhaps  may  be  esteemed  a  hard 
saying,  but  experience  sadly  evinces  the  truth 
of  it ;  for  some  place  religion  in  being  of  this 
or  that  communion  ;  more,  in  morality  ;  most, 
in  a  round  of  duties,  and  a  model  of  perform- 
ances ;  and  few,  very  few,  acknowledge  it  to 
be,  what  it  really  is,  a  thorough  inward  change 
of  nature,  a  divine  life,  a  vital  participation 
of  Jesus  Christ,  an  union  of  the  soul 
with  God  ;  which  the  apostle  expresses  by 
saying,  *  He  that  is  joined  to  the  Lord  is  one 
spirit' 

Hence  it  happens  that  so  many,  even  of  the 
most  knowing  professors,  when  you  come  to 
converse  with  them  concerning  the  essence,  the 
life,  the  soul  of  religion,  I  mean  our  new  birth 
in  Jesus  Christ,  confess  themselves  quite 
ignorant  of  the  matter,  and  cry  out  with 
Nicodemus,  '  How  can  this  thing  be  ? '  And 
no  wonder  then,  that  so  many  are  only  almost 
Christians,    when    so    many    know    not    what 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      105 

Christianity  is  :  no  marvel,  that  so  many  take 
up  with  the  form,  when  they  are  quite  strangers 
to  the  power  of  godliness  ;  or  content  them- 
selves with  the  shadow,  when  they  know  so 
little  about  the  substance  of  it.  And  this  is 
one  cause  why  so  many  are  almost,  and  so  few 
are  altogether  Christians. 

2.  A  second  reason  that  may  be  assigned 
why  so  many  are  no  more  than  almost 
Christians,  is  a  servile  fear  of  man  :  multitudes 
there  are,  and  have  been,  who,  though  awakened 
to  a  sense  of  the  divine  life,  and  having  tasted 
and  felt  the  powers  of  the  world  to  come  ;  yet 
out  of  a  base  sinful  fear  of  being  counted 
singular,  or  contemned  by  men,  have  suffered 
all  those  good  impressions  to  wear  off.  It  is 
true,  they  have  some  esteem  for  Jesus  Christ  ; 
but  then,  like  Nicodemus,  they  would  come  to 
Him  only  by  night  :  they  are  willing  to  serve 
Him  ;  but  then  they  would  do  it  secretly,  for 
fear  of  the  Jews  ;  they  have  a  mind  to  see 
Jesus,  but  then  they  cannot  come  to  Him 
because  of  the  press,  and  for  fear  of  being 
laughed  at  and  ridiculed  by  those  with  whom 
they  used  to  sit  at  meat. 


io6      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

But  well  did  our  Saviour  prophesy  of  such 
persons,  '  How  can  ye  love  Me,  who  receive 
honour  one  of  another  ? '  Alas  !  have  they 
never  read,  that  *  The  friendship  of  this  world 
is  enmity  with  God  ' :  and  that  our  Lord 
Himself  has  threatened,  '  Whosoever  shall  be 
ashamed  of  Me  or  of  My  words,  in  this  wicked 
and  adulterous  generation,  of  him  shall  the 
Son  of  Man  be  ashamed,  when  He  cometh  in 
the  glory  of  His  Father,  and  of  His  holy 
angels  ? '  No  wonder  that  so  many  are  no 
more  than  almost  Christians,  since  so  many 
'  love  the  praise  of  men  more  than  the  honour 
which  cometh  of  God.' 

3.  A  third  reason  why  so  many  are  no  more 
than  almost  Christians,  is  a  reigning  love  of 
money.  This  was  the  pitiable  case  of  that 
forward  young  man  in  the  Gospel  who  came 
running  to  our  blessed  Lord  and,  kneeling 
before  Him,  inquired  what  he  must  do  to 
'  inherit  eternal  life ' ;  to  whom  our  blessed 
Master  replied,  '  Thou  knowest  the  Command- 
ments, Do  not  kill.  Do  not  commit  adultery. 
Do  not  steal  '  ;  to  which  the  young  man 
replied,  '  All  these  have  I  kept  from  my  youth.' 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      107 

But  when  our  Lord  proceeded  to  tell  him, 
'  Yet  lackest  thou  one  thing  ;  go,  sell  all  that 
thou  hast,  and  give  to  the  poor ' ;  he  was 
grieved  at  that  saying,  and  went  away  sorrowful, 
'  for  he  had  great  possessions  ! ' 

Poor  youth  !  he  had  a  good  mind  to  be  a 
Christian,  and  to  inherit  eternal  life,  but  thought 
it  too  dear,  if  it  could  be  purchased  at  no  less 
an  expense  than  of  his  estate !  And  thus 
many,  both  young  and  old,  nowadays,  come 
running  to  worship  our  blessed  Lord  in  public, 
and  kneel  before  Him  in  private,  and  inquire 
at  His  Gospel,  what  they  must  do  to  inherit 
eternal  life  :  but  when  they  find  they  must 
renounce  the  self- enjoyment  of  riches,  and 
forsake  all  in  affection  to  follow  Him,  they 
cry,  '  The  Lord  pardon  us  in  this  thing !  We 
pray  Thee  have  us  excused.' 

But  is  heaven  so  small  a  trifle  in  men's 
esteem,  as  not  to  be  worth  a  little  gilded  earth  ? 
Is  eternal  life  so  mean  a  purchase,  as  not  to 
deserve  a  temporary  renunciation  of  a  few 
transitory  riches  ?  Surely  it  is.  But  however 
inconsistent  such  a  behaviour  may  be,  this 
inordinate  love  of  money  is  too  evidently  the 


io8      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

common  and  fatal  cause  why  so  many  are  no 
more  than  almost  Christians. 

4.  Nor  is  the  love  of  pleasure  a  less  un- 
common or  a  less  fatal  cause  why  so  many 
are  no  more  than  almost  Christians.  Thousands 
and  ten  thousands  there  are  who  despise  riches, 
and  would  willingly  be  true  disciples  of  Jesus 
Christ,  if  parting  with  their  money  would  make 
them  so  ;  but  when  they  are  told  that  our 
blessed  Lord  has  said,  '  Whosoever  will  come 
after  Me  must  deny  himself,'  like  the  pitiable 
young  man  before  mentioned,  '  they  go  away 
sorrowful ' :  for  they  have  too  great  a  love  for 
sensual  pleasures.  They  will  perhaps  send  for 
the  ministers  of  Christ,  as  Herod  did  for  John, 
and  hear  them  gladly  :  but  touch  them  in  their 
Herodias,  tell  them  they  must  part  with  such 
or  such  a  darling  pleasure,  and  with  wicked 
Ahab  they  cry  out,  '  Hast  thou  found  us, 
O  our  enemy  ?  '  Tell  them  of  the  necessity 
of  mortification  and  self-denial,  and  it  is  as 
difficult  for  them  to  hear,  as  if  you  were  to  bid 
them '  cut  off  a  right  hand  or  pluck  out  a  right 
eye.'  They  cannot  think  our  blessed  Lord 
requires  so  much  at   their   hands,  though    an 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      109 

inspired  apostle  has  commanded  us  to  'mortify 
our  members  which  are  upon  earth.'  And  who 
himself,  even  after  he  had  converted  thousands, 
and  was  very  nearly  arrived  to  the  end  of  his 
race,  yet  professed  that  it  was  his  daily  practice 
to  *  keep  under  his  body,  and  bring  it  into 
subjection,  lest,  after  he  had  preached  to  others, 
he  himself  should  be  a  castaway.' 

But  some  men  would  be  wiser  than  this 
great  apostle,  and  chalk  out  to  us  what  they 
falsely  imagine  an  easier  way  to  happiness. 
They  would  flatter  us,  we  may  go  to  heaven 
without  offering  violence  to  our  sensual 
appetites ;  and  enter  into  the  strait  gate 
without  striving  against  our  carnal  inclinations. 
And  this  is  another  reason  why  so  many  are 
only  almost,  and  not  altogether  Christians. 

5.  The  fifth  and  last  reason  I  shall  assign 
why  so  many  are  only  almost  Christians,  is 
a  fickleness  and  instability  of  temper. 

It  has  been,  no  doubt,  a  misfortune  that 
many  a  minister  and  sincere  Christian  has 
met  with,  to  weep  and  wail  over  numbers  of 
promising  converts,  who  seemingly  began  in 
the    Spirit,   but   after  a  while   fell   away,  and 


no      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

basely  ended   in   the   flesh  ;    and   this  not   for 
want   of  right  notions  in   religion,  nor  out  of 
a  servile    fear  of  man,  nor  from   the   love  of 
money,  or  of  sensual  pleasure,  but  through  an 
instability    and    fickleness    of   temper.      They 
looked    upon  religion,  merely   for  novelty,  as 
something  which   pleased   them    for  a  while ; 
but    after    their    curiosity    was    satisfied    they 
laid  it  aside  again  :  like  the  young  man  that 
came  to  see  Jesus  with  a  linen  cloth  about  his 
naked    body,   they   have    followed   Him    for  a 
season,   but  when    temptations   came   to   take 
hold  on  them,  for  want  of  a  little  more  resolution, 
they    have    been    stripped    of  all    their    good 
intentions,  and    fled    away   naked.       They   at 
first,    like    a   tree    planted    by   the  water-side, 
grew  up  and  flourished  for  a  while  ;  but  having 
no  root  in  themselves,  no  inward  principle  of 
holiness   and    piety,  like   Jonah's    gourd,  they 
were  soon  dried  up  and  withered.     Their  good 
intentions  are  too  like  the  violent  motions  of 
the  animal  spirits  of  a  body  newly  beheaded, 
which,  though  impetuous,  are  not  lasting.      In 
short,  they  set   out  well    in    their  journey  to 
heaven,  but  finding  the  way  either  narrower  or 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      iii 

longer  than  they  expected,  through  an  un- 
steadiness of  temper,  they  have  made  an 
eternal  halt,  and  so  '  returned  like  the  dog 
to  his  vomit,  or  like  the  sow  that  was  washed 
to  her  wallowing  in  the  mire  ! ' 

But  I  tremble  to  pronounce  the  fate  of  such 
unstable  professors,  who,  having  put  their 
hands  to  the  plough,  for  want  of  a  little  more 
resolution,  shamefully  look  back.  How  shall 
I  repeat  to  them  that  dreadful  threatening, 
'  If  any  man  draw  back,  My  soul  shall  have 
no  pleasure  in  him  '  ;  and  again,  '  It  is 
impossible  (that  is,  exceeding  difficult  at  least) 
for  those  that  have  been  once  enlightened, 
and  have  tasted  of  the  heavenly  gift,  and  the 
powers  of  the  world  to  come,  if  they  should 
fall  away,  to  be  renewed  again  unto  repent- 
ance.' But  notwithstanding  the  Gospel  is  so 
severe  against  apostates,  yet  many  that  begun 
well,  through  a  fickleness  of  temper  (oh,  that  none 
of  us  here  present  may  ever  be  such!),  have  been 
by  this  means,  of  the  number  of  those  that  turn 
back  unto  perdition.  And  this  is  the  fifth,  and 
the  last  reason  I  shall  give,  why  so  many  are 
only  almost,  and  not  altogether  Christians. 
I 


112      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

III.  Proceed  we  now  to  the  third  general 
thing  proposed,  namely,  to  consider  the  folly 
of  being  no  more  than  an  almost  Christian. 

I.  And  the  first  proof  I  shall  give  of  the 
folly  of  such  a  proceeding  is,  that  it  is  ineffec- 
tual to  salvation.  It  is  true,  such  men  are 
almost  good  ;  but  almost  to  hit  the  mark, 
is  really  to  miss  it.  God  requires  us  '  to 
love  Him  with  all  our  hearts,  with  all  our 
souls,  and  with  all  our  strength.'  He  loves 
us  too  well  to  admit  any  rival  ;  because,  so 
far  as  our  hearts  are  empty  of  God,  so  far 
must  they  be  unhappy.  The  devil,  indeed, 
like  the  false  mother  that  came  before  Solo- 
mon, would  have  our  hearts  divided,  as  she 
would  have  had  the  child  ;  but  God,  like 
the  true  mother,  will  have  all  or  none.  '  My 
son,  give  Me  thy  heart,'  thy  whole  heart,  is  the 
general  call  to  all  :  and  if  this  be  not  done, 
we  never  can  expect  the  divine  mercy. 

Persons  may  play  the  hypocrite  ;  but  God 
at  the  great  day  will  strike  them  dead  (as 
He  did  Ananias  and  Sapphira  by  the  mouth 
of  His  servant  Peter),  for  pretending  to  offer 
Him    all    their  hearts,  when  they   keep  back 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      113 

from  Him  the  greatest  part.  They  may 
perhaps  impose  upon  their  fellow-creatures 
for  a  while  ;  but  He  that  enabled  Ahijah  to 
cry  out,  '  Come  in,  thou  wife  of  Jeroboam,' 
when  she  came  disguised  to  inquire  about  her 
sick  son,  will  also  discover  them  through  their 
most  artful  dissimulations  ;  and  if  their  hearts 
are  not  wholly  with  Him,  appoint  them  their 
portion  with  hypocrites  and  unbelievers. 

2.  But.  secondly,  What  renders  a  half-way 
piety  more  inexcusable  is,  that  it  is  not  only 
insufficient  to  our  own  salvation,  but  also  very 
prejudicial  to  that  of  others. 

An  almost  Christian  is  one  of  the  most 
hurtful  creatures  in  the  world  :  he  is  a  wolf 
in  sheep's  clothing  ;  he  is  one  of  those  false 
prophets  our  blessed  Lord  bids  us  beware  of, 
in  His  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  who  would 
persuade  men  that  the  way  to  heaven  is 
broader  than  it  really  is  ;  and  thereby,  as  it 
was  observed  before,  '  enter  not  into  the  king- 
dom of  God  themselves  ;  and  those  that  are 
entering  in  they  hinder.'  These,  these  are 
the  men  that  turn  the  world  into  a  lukewarm 
Laodicean   spirit  ;    that  hang  out  false  lights, 


114      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

and  so  shipwreck  unthinking  benighted  souls 
in  their  voyage  to  the  haven  of  eternity. 
These  are  they  who  are  greater  enemies  to 
the  Cross  of  Christ  than  infidels  themselves: 
for  of  an  unbeliever  everyone  will  be  aware  ; 
but  an  almost  Christian,  through  his  subtle 
hypocrisy,  draws  away  many  after  him  ;  and 
therefore  must  expect  to  receive  the  greater 
damnation. 

3.  But,  thirdly,  As  it  is  most  prejudicial  to 
ourselves  and  hurtful  to  others,  so  it  is  the 
greatest  instance  of  ingratitude  we  can  express 
towards  our  Lord  and  Master  Jesus  Christ. 
For  did  He  come  down  from  heaven,  and 
shed  His  precious  blood,  to  purchase  these 
hearts  of  ours,  and  shall  we  only  give  Him 
half  of  them  ?  Oh,  how  can  we  say  we  love 
Him,  when  our  hearts  are  not  wholly  with 
Him  ?  How  can  we  call  Him  our  Saviour, 
when  we  will  not  endeavour  sincerely  to 
approve  ourselves  to  Him,  and  so  let  Him 
see  the  travail  of  His  soul,  and  be  satisfied  ! 

Had  any  of  us  purchased  a  slave  ^  at  a  most 

^  Whitefield  himself  bought  in  1747,  towards  the  support  of 
his  orphan-house,  a  plantation  and  slaves  in  South  Carolina. 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      115 

expensive  rate,  and  who  was  before  involved 
in  the  utmost  miseries  and  torments,  and  so 
must  have  continued  for  ever,  had  we  shut  up 
our  bowels  of  compassion  from  him  ;  and  was 
this  slave  afterwards  to  grow  rebellious,  or  deny 
giving  us  but  half  his  service ;  how,  how 
should  we  exclaim  against  his  base  ingrati- 
tude !  And  yet  this  base  ungrateful  slave 
thou  art,  O  man,  who  acknowledgest  thyself  to 
be  redeemed  from  infinite  unavoidable  misery 
and  punishment  by  the  death  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  yet  wilt  not  give  thyself  wholly  to  Him. 
But  shall  we  deal  with  God  our  Maker  in  a 
manner  we  would  not  be  dealt  with  by  a  man 
like  ourselves  ?  God  forbid  !  No.  Suffer 
me,  therefore, 

To  add  a  word  or  two  of  exhortation  to  you, 
to  excite  you  to  be  not  only  almost,  but  alto- 
gether Christians.  Oh,  let  us  scorn  all  base 
and  treacherous  treatment  of  our  King  and 
Saviour,  of  our  God  and  Creator.  Let  us 
not    take  some  pains    all   our    lives  to  go  to 

He  defended  on  biblical  grounds  the  lawfulness  of  slave- 
holding.  (See  Diet.  Nat.  Biog.  Ixi.  90 ;  and  see  Stevens's 
The  Slave  in  History,  pp.  154-5.) 


ii6      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

heaven,  and  yet  plunge  ourselves  into  hell  at 
last.  Let  us  give  to  God  our  whole  hearts, 
and  no  longer  halt  between  two  opinions  :  if 
the  world  be  god,  let  us  serve  that ;  if  pleasure 
be  a  god,  let  us  serve  that ;  but  if  the  Lord, 
He  be  God,  let  us,  oh,  let  us  serve  Him  alone. 
Alas  !  why,  why  should  we  stand  out  any 
longer?  Why  should  we  be  so  in  love  with 
slavery,  as  not  wholly  to  renounce  the  world, 
the  flesh,  and  the  devil,  which,  like  so  many 
spiritual  chains,  bind  down  our  souls,  and 
hinder  them  from  flying  up  to  God  ?  Alas  ! 
what  are  we  afraid  of?  Is  not  God  able  to 
reward  our  entire  obedience  ?  If  He  is,  as 
the  almost  Christian's  lame  way  of  serving 
Him  seems  to  grant,  why,  then,  will  we  not 
serve  Him  entirely  ?  For  the  same  reason 
we  do  so  much,  why  do  we  not  do  more  ? 
Or  do  you  think  that  being  only  half  religious 
will  make  you  happy,  but  that  going  farther 
will  render  you  miserable  and  uneasy  ? 

Alas  !  this,  my  brethren,  is  delusion  all  over; 
for  what  is  it  but  this  half  piety ^  this  wavering 
between  God  and  the  world,  that  makes  so 
many,  that  are  seemingly  well  disposed,  such 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN      117 

utter  strangers  to  the  comforts  of  religion  ? 
They  choose  just  so  much  of  religion  as  will 
disturb  them  in  their  lusts,  and  follow  their 
lusts  so  far  as  to  deprive  themselves  of  the 
comforts  of  religion.  Whereas,  on  the  contrary, 
would  they  sincerely  leave  all  in  affection,  and 
give  their  hearts  wholly  to  God,  they  would 
then  (and  they  cannot  till  then)  experience  the 
unspeakable  pleasure  of  having  a  mind  at  unity 
with  itself,  and  enjoy  such  a  peace  of  God, 
which  even  in  this  life  passes  all  understand- 
ing, and  which  they  were  entire  strangers  to 
before. 

It  is  true,  if  we  will  devote  ourselves  entirely 
to  God,  we  must  meet  with  contempt  ;  but 
then  it  is  because  contempt  is  necessary  to 
heal  our  pride.  We  must  renounce  some 
sensual  pleasures  ;  but  then  it  is  because  those 
unfit  us  for  spiritual  ones,  which  are  infinitely 
better.  We  must  renounce  the  love  of  the 
world  ;  but  then  it  is  that  we  may  be  filled 
with  the  love  of  God  :  and  when  that  has 
once  enlarged  our  hearts,  we  shall,  like  Jacob 
when  he  served  for  his  beloved  Rachel,  think 
nothing    too    difficult    to    undergo,     no    hard- 


ii8      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

ships  too  tedious  to  endure,  because  of  the 
love  we  shall  then  have  for  our  dear  Redeemer. 
Thus  easy,  thus  delightful  will  be  the  ways  of 
God  even  in  this  life.  But  when  once  we 
throw  off  these  bodies,  and  our  souls  are  filled 
with  all  the  fulness  of  God,  oh,  what  heart  can 
conceive,  what  tongue  can  express,  with  what 
unspeakable  joy  and  consolation  shall  we  then 
look  back  on  our  past  sincere  and  hearty 
services  !  Think  you  then,  my  dear  hearers, 
we  shall  repent  we  had  done  too  much ;  or 
rather  think  you  not,  we  shall  be  ashamed  that 
we  did  no  more ;  and  blush  we  were  so 
backward  to  give  up  all  to  God  ;  when  He 
intended  hereafter  to  give  us   Himself? 

Let  me  therefore,  to  conclude,  exhort  you, 
my  brethren,  to  have  always  before  you  the 
unspeakable  happiness  of  enjoying  God.  And 
think  withal,  that  every  degree  of  holiness  you 
neglect,  every  act  of  piety  you  omit,  is  a  jewel 
taken  out  of  your  crown,  a  degree  of  blessed- 
ness lost  in  the  vision  of  God.  Oh,  do  but 
always  think  and  act  thus,  and  you  will  no 
longer  be  labouring  to  compound  matters 
between    God    and    the    world ;    but,    on    the 


THE  ALMOST  CHRISTIAN       119 

contrary,  be  daily  endeavouring  to  give  up 
yourselves  more  and  more  unto  Him  ;  you  will 
be  always  watching,  always  praying,  always 
aspiring  after  farther  degrees  of  purity  and 
love,  and  consequently  always  preparing  your- 
selves for  a  fuller  sight  and  enjoyment  of  that 
God,  in  whose  presence  there  is  fulness  of  joy, 
and  at  whose  right  hand  there  are  pleasures  for 
evermore.     Amen !     Amen ! 


V 

GLORIFYING    GOD    IN    THE    FIRE 

'Wherefore    glorify    ye    the    Lord    in    the    fires.' — Isaiah 
xxiv.  15. 

You  have  oft,  my  dear  hearers,  let  me  tell  you, 
met  with  affliction  ;  and  I  believe  you  may 
persuade  yourselves  affliction  is  at  hand,  which 
makes  such  deep  impressions,  when  sent  and 
blessed  by  heaven,  as  to  thaw  the  very  heart. 
Faith,  like  some  glasses  to  view  objects  near 
us,  sets  them  in  so  strong  a  light,  that  we 
cannot  help  being  affected  with  the  weight  of 
the  impression  ;  hence  the  prophets,  when 
under  a  divine  impulse,  foresaw  things  at  a 
distance  ;  spoke  and  wrote  of  them  as  though 
actually  present.  '  They  sung  both  of  judg- 
ment and  mercy,'  in  such  strong  and  persuasive 
strains,  as  to  convince  of  the  reality  of  their 
existence. 

Isaiah,  who  had  a  courtly  education,  being 
probably  brother  to  a  king,  seems  to  excel  in 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    121 

this  kind  of  speaking  ;  a  person  of  good  natural, 
as  well  as  acquired  abilities,  which  being 
tempered  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  made  him  a 
kind  of  an  angel,  of  an  orator,  of  a  writer,  and 
a  prophet.  When  he  penned  this  chapter,  he 
probably  foresaw  the  dreadful  calamities  coming 
on  the  land  ;  and  so  strong  was  his  persuasion, 
that  he  writes  as  though  he  saw  the  things 
taking  place.  '  Behold  (says  he),  the  Lord 
maketh  the  earth  empty,  maketh  it  waste, 
and  turneth  it  upside  down,  and  scattereth 
abroad  the  inhabitants  thereof  How  much 
is  expressed  in  a  few  words  !  *  As  with  the 
people,  so  with  the  priests,'  who,  perhaps,  on 
account  of  their  situation  in  the  Church,  might 
think  they  should  be  exempted  ;  but  if  the 
priests  sin  with  the  people,  they  shall  be 
punished  with  the  people.  '  As  with  the 
servant,  so  with  his  master  ;  as  with  the  maid, 
so  with  her  mistress  ;  as  with  the  buyer,  so 
with  the  seller ;  as  with  the  lender,  so  with  the 
borrower  ;  as  with  the  taker  of  usury,  so  with 
the  giver  of  usury  to  him.'  So  you  see  that 
the  visitation  would  be  universal  ;  that  it  should 
fall  on  all  sorts  of  people. 


122      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Ver.  3.  '  The  land  shall  be  utterly  emptied 
and  utterly  spoiled '  :  probably,  by  a  foreign 
foe  taking  advantage  of  the  domestic  confusions, 
who  shall  destroy  the  fruits  of  the  earth.  Some 
may  think,  perhaps,  that  this  will  never  come  to 
pass  ;  but  saith  Isaiah,  '  The  Lord  hath  spoken 
it'  It  pleased  God  the  nation  should  be  devoted 
to  a  dreadful  stroke  :  '  The  earth  mourneth  and 
fadeth  away,  the  world  languisheth  and  fadeth 
away,  the  haughty  people  of  the  earth  do 
languish,'  whose  crimes,  one  would  think, 
would  never  be  brought  to  punishment,  on 
account  of  the  eminence  of  their  stations ; 
they  thought  themselves  out  of  danger,  but 
they  shall  feel  the  common  scourge  :  *  For  the 
earth  also,'  as  in  the  fifth  verse,  *  is  defiled 
under  the  inhabitants  thereof;  because  they 
have  transgressed  the  laws,  changed  the 
ordinances,  broken   the   everlasting   covenant.' 

God  did  not  strike  without  a  cause ;  for 
the  earth  groaned,  as  it  were,  under  the  sins 
of  the  inhabitants,  for  their  neglect  of  religion, 
for  disowning  God,  for  turning  their  back  on 
the  Most  High.  '  Therefore  hath  the  curse 
devoured  the  earth,  and  they  that  dwell  therein 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    123 

are  desolate '  (ver.  6).  He  does  not  say  it  shall 
be,  but  it  is  done.  '  The  inhabitants  of  the 
earth  are  burned,'  with  dreadful  fire  of  con- 
suming vengeance,  '  and  few  men  left'  All 
the  merry-hearted,  that  minded  nothing  but 
jollity  and  mirth,  even  '  they  do  sigh.  The 
joy  of  the  harp  ceaseth  ;  they  shall  not  drink 
wine  with  a  song  ;  strong  drink  shall  be 
bitter  to  them  that  drink  it.  The  (very  great) 
city  (the  metropolis)  is  broken  down  ;  every 
house  is  shut  up,  that  no  man  may  come  in.' 
The  inhabitants  forsake  it,  their  houses  are 
left,  shut  up,  because  they  are  afraid  some 
foreign  power  should  come  to  their  destruction. 
'  There  is  a  crying  for  wine  in  the  streets  ;  all 
joy  is  darkened,  the  mirth  of  the  land  is 
gone ' :  no  plays,  no  routs,  no  assemblies 
now  ;  '  the  city  is  left  desolate,'  the  court  not 
excepted ;  desolation  herself  takes  her  seat, 
and  ravages  there.  '  The  earth  shall  reel  to 
and  fro  like  a  drunkard,  and  shall  be  removed 
like  a  cottage  ;  and  the  transgression  thereof 
shall  be  heavy  upon  it ;  and  it  shall  fall,  and 
not  rise  again.' 

What  an  amazing  scene  is  this  !      Enough 


124      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

to  fill  us  with  horror,  even  at  this  distance  of 
time  and  place !  But  is  there  no  way  for 
escape  ?  Is  there  no  light  breaking  through 
this  dark  shade  ?  Blessed  be  God,  there  is  ; 
look  at  ver.  13,  you  will  find  in  the  midst  of 
dangers,  God  shall  lend  His  presence.  '  When 
thus  it  shall  be '  (pray  mind  that)  '  in  the  midst 
of  the  land  among  the  people,'  what  follows  ? 
*  there  shall  be  as  the  shaking  of  an  olive  tree, 
and  as  the  gleaning  grapes  when  the  vintage 
is  done ' ;  there  shall  be  a  few  godly  people 
left,  let  the  devil  do  what  he  will  ;  but  there 
will  be  but  few.  You  know,  after  the  people 
have  gathered  the  fruits  from  the  tree,  they 
shake  it  to  bring  down  the  remainder ;  and 
after  reaping  of  corn,  there  are  a  few  gleanings  : 
so  the  Lord  says,  it  shall  destroy  most  people, 
yet  in  so  discriminating  a  way,  that  God's  people 
should  be  safe. 

I  cannot  well  recollect  how  Archbishop 
Usher  applies  this ;  but  this  I  am  sure  he 
says,  there  will  certainly  come  a  time  when 
the  world  will  undergo  the  greatest  scourge 
that  ever  it  felt,  which  shall  chiefly  fall  on  the 
outward-court    worshippers,    upon    those    that 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    125 

know  not  God  ;  God  will  take  particular  care 
of  securing  His  own  ;  and  when  the  wicked 
are  all  destroyed,  the  Christians  shall  go  to  a 
little  city,  and  there  shall  dwell  in  Goshen,  till 
God  shall  call  home  His  ancient  people  the 
Jews. 

So  God  will  take  care  of  His  people,  that 
they  shall  be  safe  :  pray  look  to  ver.  1 4,  '  they 
shall  lift  up  their  voice '  ;  what,  to  cry  ? 
No,  they  have  done  with  prayers,  they  have 
done  with  fasting ;  they  have  lifted  up  their 
voice,  and  often  exhorted  their  neighbours  to 
'  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come ' ;  but  now  they 
shall  sing  for  the  majesty  of  God  ;  when  all 
people  are  mourning,  they  shall  rejoice.  And 
at  the  great  day,  when  Jesus  Christ  pronounces 
the  wicked  damned,  '  Depart,  ye  cursed,'  God's 
people  will  then  lift  up  their  voices  with  majesty 
and  triumph. 

Some  years  ago,  being  present  at  the  trial  of 
a  very  vile  person  at  the  Old  Bailey,  and  being 
in  suspense  whether  he  would  be  brought  in 
guilty  or  no,  when  the  word  '  guilty '  came,  and 
the  people  heard  of  it,  they  did  in  effect  give 
an  eclat  to  it.    Whether  just  or  unjust,  I  thought 


126      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

it  was  an  emblem  of  that  awful  day,  when  all 
the  angels  of  God  and  His  saints  shall  say 
Amen ;  when  God  consigns  the  wicked  to 
hell  :  God  grant  this  may  not  be  any  of  your 
case  ! 

Says  the  prophet,  '  They  shall  cry  aloud 
from  the  sea ' :  some  of  them  may  be  on  the 
other  side  of  the  water,  gone  abroad,  while 
others  stay  at  home  ;  but  whether  at  home  or 
abroad,  though  they  have  been  banished  by 
persecution,  though  they  have  been  driven  to 
the  other  side  of  the  water,  which  has  been  the 
case  of  many  persons  before  now,  '  yet  they 
shall  cry  aloud  ' ;  they  shall  find  the  same  God 
abroad  as  they  did  at  home. 

A  judge  said  to  a  good  old  Christian  that 
was  persecuted  in  Charles  II.'s  time,  '  I  will 
banish  you  to  America '  ;  says  she,  '  Very  well, 
you  cannot  send  me  out  of  my  Father's  country.' 
They  shall  cry  aloud  from  the  sea,  '  Wherefore 
glorify  ye  the  Lord  in  the  fires '  ;  if  this  is  the 
case,  the  prophet  draws  the  inference  :  what 
must  they  do  under  these  circumstances  ?  why, 
they  must  study  how  to  glorify  God  in  the 
fires,  not  how  to  escape  or  run  away  from  Him, 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    127 

but  how  to  glorify  Him  ;  '  wherefore,'  saith  He, 
'  glorify  Me,'  glorify  Me,  the  Lord,  '  in  the 
fires';  not  the  fire,  in  the  singular  number, 
but  in  the  plural  number,  fires. 

We  are,  my  brethren,  very  much  mistaken, 
if  we  allow  ourselves  to  think  we  have  but  one 
fire  to  go  through. 

These  words  imply,  in  order  to  bring  them 
home  to  ourselves,  that  all  God's  people  must 
be  put  into  the  fires.  Fire  sometimes  denotes 
the  love  of  God,  sometimes  the  work  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  and  very  often  it  denotes  affliction  ; 
therefore  the  apostle  talks  of  a  '  fiery  trial ' ; 
and  let  it  be  of  whatever  kind  it  will,  let  it 
be  upon  mind,  body,  or  estate ;  whether  it 
comes  from  friend  or  foe,  or  whether  it  comes 
immediately  from  the  hand  of  God  Himself 
upon  the  soul,  it  may  well  be  compared  to 
fire,  for  you  all  know  that  fire  scorches  :  God 
expects,  when  He  strikes,  that  we  should  feel. 
Of  all  things  in  the  world  to  be  avoided,  a 
stony  heart,  or  a  stupidity  under  God's  afflict- 
ing hand,  is  most  to  be  deprecated.  I  suppose 
you  have  heard  of  the  Stoics,  with  whom  the 
Apostle  Paul  disputed  in  the  place  of  public 


128      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

traffic  in  Athens.  Paul  did  not  take  a  walk  to 
Change  to  talk  on  trade  ;  he  went  to  talk  about 
Jesus  Christ,  if  he  could  meet  with  one  to  talk 
with.  I  wish  the  clergy  took  no  other  walks 
but  these. 

Everything  is  to  be  tried  by  fire  ;  we  may 
talk  what  we  please,  but  we  shall  never  know 
what  metal  we  are  made  of,  till  God  puts  us 
into  the  fire.  It  is  very  easy  talking  what  we 
can  bear,  and  what  we  can  do,  but  let  God  lay 
His  hand  on  us,  and  we  shall  see  what  we  are. 
We  are  apt  to  find  fault,  and  be  peevish  with 
our  friends  and  relations,  under  such  circum- 
stances ;  they  are  apt  to  say.  You  should  be 
patient,  and  patient,  and  patient  ;  ah  !  put 
these  reprovers  into  the  same  furnace,  and  see 
how  patient  they  will  be  :  they  say,  There  is 
no  putting  old  men's  heads  upon  young  men's 
shoulders  ;  and  there  is  no  putting  old  heads 
upon  souls  young  in  experience.  The  devil 
knew  very  well  how  it  was  when  he  said, 
'  Hast  Thou  not  made  an  hedge  about  Job, 
and  about  his  house,  and  about  all  that  he 
hath  on  every  side?  Thou  hast  blessed  the 
work   of  his   hands,  and   his   substance  is  in- 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    129 

creased  in  the  land  ;  but  put  forth  Thy  hand 
now,  and  touch  all  that  he  hath,  and  he  will 
curse  Thee  to  Thy  face.'  So  we  should  all  do, 
if  God  were  to  leave  us  to  ourselves,  and  our 
faith  is  not  of  the  right  sort. 

How  shall  we  know  if  our  faith  is  good  ? 
We  often  pray,  Lord,  give  us  Abraham's  faith, 
but  never  pray,  give  us  Abraham's  trial  at  the 
same  time.  I  was  once  in  Scotland,  at  a  great 
man's  house,  where  several  rich  people  were, 
that  knew  Jesus  Christ :  God  having  blessed 
my  labours  at  a  former  visit,  I  was  desired  by 
the  nobleman  to  pray ;  and  I  remember,  I 
prayed  the  Lord  to  give  us  great  faith  and 
patience  :—  -'  Oh,'  said  Satan,  as  strong  as  if  he 
had  spoke  to  me,  '  do  not  pray  for  that,  for 
thou  shalt  have  great  trials.'  '  Oh,'  said  I,  '  if 
that  be  the  case,  I  will  turn  the  devil's  prayer 
against  himself '  ;  and  I  prayed,  '  O  Lord,  give 
us  great  grace,  and  never  mind  what  trials.' 
Often,  when  we  are  under  temptations,  God 
takes  us  at  our  words  :  '  Oh,'  says  one,  '  what  a 
prayer  I  had,  I  prayed  for  faith  and  patience  ; 
I  was  upon  the  mount,  and  never  thought  of 
coming  down,  and  feeling  a  storm  again.' 


I30      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Fire,  my  brethren,  not  only  burns  and 
purges,  but  you  know  it  separates  one  thing 
from  another,  and  is  made  use  of  in  chemistry 
and  mechanical  businesses.  What  could  we 
do  without  fire  ?  It  tries  metal,  to  purge  it. 
God  Almighty  knows,  we  are  often  purged 
more  in  one  hour  by  a  good  sound  trial,  than 
by  a  thousand  manifestations  of  His  love.  It 
is  a  fine  thing  to  come  purified,  to  come 
pardoned,  out  of  the  furnace  of  affliction  ;  it 
is  intended  to  purge  us,  '  to  separate  the 
precious  from  the  vile,  the  chaff  from  the 
wheat '  ;  and  God,  in  order  to  do  this,  is 
pleased  to  put  us  into  one  fire  after  another, 
which  makes  me  love  to  see  a  good  man  under 
afflictions,  because  it  teaches  something  of  the 
work  of  God  in  the  heart. 

I  remember,  some  years  ago,  when  I  first 
preached  in  the  north  of  England,  at  Shields, 
near  Newcastle,  I  went  into  a  glass-house,  and 
standing  very  attentive,  I  saw  several  masses 
of  burning  glass,  of  various  forms.  The  work- 
man took  one  piece  of  glass  and  put  it  into 
one  furnace,  then  he  put  it  into  a  second,  and 
then  into  a  third.     When   I  asked  him,  '  Why 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    131 

do  you  put  this  into  so  many  fires  ? '  he 
answered,  *0h,  sir,  the  first  was  not  hot  enough, 
nor  the  second,  and  therefore  we  put  it  into 
the  third,  and  that  will  make  it  transparent.' 

Taking  leave  of  him  in  a  proper  manner,  it 
occurred  to  me,  this  would  make  a  good 
sermon.  Oh,  thought  I,  does  this  man  put  this 
glass  into  one  furnace  after  another,  that  we 
may  see  through  it  ?  Oh,  may  God  put  me  into 
one  furnace  after  another,  that  my  soul  may 
be  transparent ;  that  I  may  see  God  as  He  is  ! 
My  brethren,  we  need  to  be  purged.  How 
apt  are  we  to  want  to  go  to  heaven  upon  a 
feather  bed  !  many  go  lying  upon  beds  of  pain 
and  languishing,  which  is  the  King's  highway 
thither.  You  know  there  are  some  ways  in 
London  called  the  king's  road,  and  they  are 
finely  gravelled,  but  the  King's  road  to  heaven 
is  strewed  with  crosses  and  afflictions.  We 
are  all  apt  to  think  well  of  being  Christians  ; 
it  is  very  pretty  talking  of  being  Christians, 
till  we  are  put  into  one  furnace  after  another. 
*  Think  it  not  strange,'  saith  the  apostle,  *  con- 
cerning the  fiery  trial  which  is  to  try  you.' 
What  must   I   do  ?     Why,  since   I   must  be  in 


132      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

the  fire,  I  must  thank  my  corruptions  for  it ; 
God  will  not  put  you  or  me  into  the  fire  if 
there  were  not  something  to  be  purged  away  ; 
the  grand  thing  is  to  learn  to  glorify  God  in 
the  fire.  *  Wherefore  glorify  ye  the  Lord  in 
the  fire.' 

When  do  we  glorify  Him  ?  When  we 
endeavour  to  get  such  grace  from  the  Lord 
that  we  may  not  dishonour  Him  when  we  are 
under  the  cross,  and  therefore  we  glorify  God 
in  the  fire  when  we  quietly  endure  it  as  a 
chastisement  for  our  sins.  If  you  keep  watch 
now,  and  live  near  to  God,  you  will  never  find 
that  you  are  put  into  a  fire,  but  you  first 
brought  yourselves  into  it ;  and  I  do  verily 
believe  from  my  heart  that  our  sin  is  always 
to  be  seen  in  our  punishment.  If  any  man 
part  from  a  child  that  he  loves  dearly,  upon 
examination  he  will  say,  '  I  find,  now  the  crea- 
ture's gone,  that  the  ivy  twined  too  much 
about  the  oak.'  And  then  he  turns  off ;  '  Ah  ! ' 
says  he,  '  God  has  met  with  me  now.'  And 
you  will  find  in  all  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ment, that  the  afflictions  of  God's  people  were 
suitable   to   their  faults :  Jacob  was    over-per- 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    133 

suaded  by  his  mother  to  get  the  blessing  by  a 
lie ;  but  he  was  a  simple-hearted  poor  creature. 
Some  persons  think  nothing  of  a  lie  ;  if  they 
can  but  get  by  it,  they  do  not  mind  it ;  but  an 
honest  man  will  shun  it.  Jacob  argues  with 
his  mother  against  it ;  'Oh/  says  she,  '  the  curse 
be  on  me,  my  son  ! '  Oh,  dreadful !  for  a  good 
woman  to  say  so.  Doubtless,  she  was  per- 
suaded God  would  give  Jacob  the  blessing, 
but  she  took  a  wrong  way  to  obtain  it ;  she 
might  have  waited  for  the  blessing  to  come 
with  a  blessing.  How  did  God  punish  Jacob  ? 
Why,  in  a  night  afterwards  poor  Jacob  was 
imposed  upon  by  a  wrong  wife,  he  got  a  Leah 
instead  of  a  Rachel.  The  poor  creature  was 
imposed  upon  there,  and  so  all  along  almost 
to  the  end  of  his  life  ;  he  had  a  furnace  of 
affliction.  Happy  they  who  pray  in  the  fur- 
nace, '  Lord,  let  me  know  why  Thou  dost  con- 
tend with  me.'  Therefore  God  sends  this 
message  to  Eli  by  Samuel,  '  The  thing  that 
thou  knowest,'  seems  to  me  to  refer  to  his  too 
great  lenity  to  his  sons  :  '  the  thing  that  thou 
knowest ' ;  thou  dost  not  act  like  a  magistrate. 
These  sons  were  the  means  of  bringing  a  judg- 


134      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

ment  on  his  house,  and  breaking  their  father's 
neck.  God  Almighty  keep  us  from  bringing  a 
rod  upon  ourselves  ! 

We  glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  we  bear  it 
patiently.  It  is  a  dreadful  thing  when  we  are 
saying  with  Cain,  '  My  punishment  is  greater 
than  I  can  bear ' ;  but  the  language  of  a  soul 
that  glorifies  God  in  the  fire  is  this,  *  Shall  I, 
Lord,  shall  I,  a  sinful  man,  complain  for  the 
punishment  of  my  sins  ?  '  It  is  a  glorious  thing 
when  we  can  say  with  a  good  man,  one  of 
whose  particular  friends  told  me  more  than 
once,  that  when  he  was  racked  with  pain,  and 
groaning  all  night  with  trouble,  he  would  often 
say,  '  Lord,  I  groan  ;  Lord,  I  groan  ;  Lord,  I 
groan  ;  but.  Lord  Jesus,  I  appeal  to  Thee, 
Thou  knowest  I  do  not  grumble.'  Then  we 
glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when,  though  we  feel 
pain  and  anguish,  we  at  the  same  time  say, 
'  Lord,  we  deserve  this  and  ten  thousand  times 
more.' 

We  glorify  God  in  the  fire  also,  when  we  are 
really  and  fully  persuaded,  God  will  not  put  us 
in  the  fire  but  for  our  good,  and  His  own 
glory.       I   am  afraid  some   people  think   God 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    135 

does  as  some  cheating  apothecaries,  that  bring 
five  things  when  they  need  not  bring  but  one, 
especially  when  they  have  some  silly  patients 
that  love  to  be  taking  physic  ;  they  send  one 
after  another,  when,  perhaps,  the  best  thing 
would  be  to  throw  them  all  away.  So  we 
think  of  God  ;  but  it  is  a  mistake  ;  He  never 
sends  one  but  what  is  necessary,  and  something 
to  be  purged   away. 

We  glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  we  say, 
*  Lord,  do  not  let  the  fire  go  out  till  it  has 
purged  away  all  my  dross.'  Then  we  glorify 
God  when  we  wish  for  the  good  of  the  fire,  and 
not  to  have  it  extinguished  ;  when  the  soul  can 
say,  *  Here  I  am,  my  God,  do  with  me  as 
seemeth  good  in  Thy  sight.  I  know  I  shall 
not  have  one  stroke  but  Thou  wilt  give  me  a 
plaster,  and  let  me  know  wherefore  Thou  con- 
tendest  with  me.' 

We  glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  we  are 
content  to  say,  *  I  know  not  what  God  does 
with  me  now,  but  I  shall  know  hereafter.'  Do 
you  tell  your  children  that  are  five  years  old 
the  reason  of  things  ?  No.  And  do  you 
think  God  will  tell  us  ?     '  What  shall  this  man 


136      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

do  ? '  said  the  disciple  ;  *  What  is  that  to 
thee?'  saith  Christ,  'follow  thou  Me.'  You 
glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  you  are  content 
to  walk  by  faith,  and  not  by  sight. 

You  glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  you  are 
not  grumbling,  but  humbly  submitting  to  His 
will  :  a  humble  spirit  walks  not  in  sulkiness 
and  stubbornness.  There  are  some  spirits  too 
stout,  they  will  not  speak.  When  that  awful 
message  was  brought  to  Eli,  what  does  he  say, 
'  It  is  the  Lord,  let  Him  do  what  seemeth  Him 
good  '  ;  let  my  children  be  killed,  whatever  be 
done,  it  is  the  Lord's  doing  ;  only,  Lord,  save 
my  soul  at  last. 

We  glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  in  the 
midst  of  the  fire  we  can  sing  God's  high 
praises.  Thus  the  children  of  Israel  glorified 
the  Lord  ;  the  song  of  the  three  children  in  the 
fiery  furnace  is  a  sweet  song,  as  are  all  that  are 
made  in  the  fire  :  '  O  all  the  works  of  the  Lord, 
praise  and  magnify  Him  for  ever  ! ' 

Then  we  glorify  God  in  the  fire,  when  we 
rejoice  in  Him,  when  we  not  only  think,  but 
know  it  best,  and  can  thank  God  for  striking 
us  ;  can  thank  God  for  whipping  us  ;  can  bless 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    137 

God  for  not  letting  us  alone  ;  thank  God  for 
not  saying,  '  Let  him  alone '  :  this  is  to  glorify 
God  in  the  fire.  *  Not  only  so,'  saith  the 
apostle,  '  but  we  glory  in  tribulation,  knowing 
that  tribulation  worketh  patience.' 

In  a  word,  we  glorify  the  Lord  in  the  fire, 
when  we  have  in  exercise,  patience,  meekness, 
humility  ;  learning  more  to  distrust  ourselves, 
having  a  deeper  knowledge  of  our  own  weak- 
ness, and  of  God's  omnipotence  and  grace. 
Happy  when  we  can  look  back  and  say,  '  Thus 
have  I  been  enabled  to  glorify  God  in  the  fire.' 
Who  can  put  his  hand  to  his  heart,  and  say,  '  I 
have  glorified  God  in  the  fire  as  I  ought  ? ' 
Instead  of  that,  I  am  afraid  the  soul  must  say, 
that  instead  of  being  thankful  and  resigned,  '  I 
have  been  fretful ;  and  because  I  will  not  find 
fault  with  myself,  nor  let  the  world  know  I  find 
fault  with  God,  I  find  fault  with  all  about  me.' 
Did  you  never  find  yourself  in  such  a  humour 
when  your  spirits  were  low  ?  I  heard  a  good 
man  once  speak  on  those  words,  '  They  shall 
bring  forth  fruit  in  old  age' :  'Oh,  the  fruit,'  said 
he,  '  is  peevishness '  ;  I  thought  it  was  the  infir- 
mity of  old  age,  the  fruit  of  which  ought  to  be 


138      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

heavenly-mindedness,   deadness  to   the    world, 
and  a  liveliness  to  God. 

My  brethren,  let  us  humble  ourselves  to- 
night, and  let  us  be  ashamed  and  abashed 
before  God,  and  wonder  He  hath  not  struck  us 
into  hell  when  we  have  been  complaining  the 
fire  was  too  hot.  Let  us  weep,  let  us  weep, 
let  us  weep  for  our  stubbornness.  Happy  they 
who  are  used  to  be  put  into  the  fire  betimes  ! 
'  It  is  good  for  a  man  to  bear  the  yoke  in  his 
youth.'  Some  years  ago,  when  I  was  at  the 
Orphan-house,  they  told  me  they  were  going 
to  yoke  two  steers  together,  one  sturdy  and 
old,  the  other  a  little  one  ;  on  which  they  no 
sooner  put  the  yoke,  but  he  kicked  once  or 
twice,  and  then  bore  it  very  well.  Oh,  thought 
I,  it  is  a  good  thing  to  have  the  yoke  betimes. 

Are  any  of  you  now  in  the  furnace,  are  any 
of  you  troubled,  or  can  any  of  you  say,  *  I  have 
no  trouble  ?  '  A  calm  is  sometimes  the  fore- 
runner of  a  storm  ;  thank  God,  you  are  not  in 
the  fire ;  surely  you  have  been  in  the  fire. 
There  is  the  devil's  fire,  the  fires  of  '  the  lust  of 
the  flesh,  the  lust  of  the  eye,  and  the  pride  of 
life '  ;  God  help  you  to  come  out  of  these  fires. 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    139 

lest  they  damn  your  souls  for  ever.  You  must 
be  put  either  in  the  devil's  fire  or  God's  fire, 
and  the  devil's  fires  are  hottest,  because  there 
is  no  God  to  support  under  the  trouble  they 
bring  upon  the  soul.  Oh,  what  a  dreadful  thing 
it  is  to  be  in  the  devil's  fire  continually,  and  to 
go  out  of  the  fire  of  the  devil  here  to  burn  with 
the  devil  in  hell  hereafter  !- 

If  there  are  any  of  you  in  this  case.  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  shorten  them,  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
sanctify  His  afflictions  to  His  people,  as  He  did 
to  one  of  the  prisoners  last  Wednesday ! 
How  sweetly  he  behaved  !  While  the  others 
were  cursing  and  swearing,  tossing  up  who 
should  sit  on  the  right  hand  in  the  cart,  he 
was  glorifying  God,  thanking  God  he  was  sent 
there,  and  going  to  be  executed.  '  God,'  saith 
he,  '  hath  stopped  me  ;  I  might  have  gone  on  in 
sin  to  ruin.  Oh,  send  to  my  father,  go  to  him, 
warn  him  to  "  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come." ' 
Oh,  remember,  fire  hardens  as  well  as  softens  ; 
and  if  you  are  not  better  by  afflictions,  you 
will  be  worse  ;  and,  indeed,  you  will  know  you 
cannot  come  out  of  the  furnace  as  you  went 
in,   you   will    either   be   hardened    or   else   be 


I40      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

purified  ;  and  if  this  be  the  case,  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  help  you  to  bear  the  fire  now, 
that  you  may  never  be  cast  into  the  fire  of  hell. 
God  haste  you  ;  hasten,  you  that  are  out  of  the 
devil's  fire,  to  flee  ;  flee,  ye  weary  souls,  to  Jesus 
Christ ;  flee  to  the  Lamb  of  God,  from  hell  to 
heaven,  as  far  as  you  can  from  these  hellish 
fires,  to  the  fire  of  His  blessed  merit  and  love. 
Happy  you  that  have  got  into  Christ's  fire  ! 
Happy  you  that  have  found  His  fires  in  your 
souls  !  I  believe  many  souls  have  !  The  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  help  you  to  glorify  Him  in 
whatever  fires  He  shall  be  pleased  to  send 
you,  and  into  whatever  furnaces  He  shall  be 
pleased  to  put  you.  We  shall  then  sing  '  the 
Church  triumphant,'  much  better  than  we  sing 
to-night ;  we  shall  see  Jesus  Christ  ready  to 
help  us  when  we  are  in  the  furnace.  Oh,  that 
this  thought  may  make  every  poor  sinner  say, 
'  By  the  help  of  God,  I  will  be  a  Christian  ;  by 
the  help  of  God,  if  I  must  burn,  it  shall  be 
burning  with  the  love  of  Christ.  I  will  say 
then,  O  Lord,  glorify  Thyself  by  snatching  me 
as  a  brand  from  the  devil's  fire.'  Oh,  that  this 
might  be  the  cry  of  every  heart ! 


GLORIFYING  GOD  IN  THE  FIRE    141 

I  am  going  to  ask  a  favour  of  you  to-night 
which  I  never  did  before,  and  perhaps,  may 
not  again  for  some  time.  I  have  had  com- 
plaints made  to  me  by  the  persons  that  take 
care  of  the  poor,  that  the  poor's  stock  is  very 
low ;  though  I  cannot  speak  on  Sunday 
night,  yet  I  will  speak  a  word  to  the  poor 
on  Wednesday  evening.  There  are  numbers 
of  poor  that  are  ready  to  perish,  and  if  you 
drop  something  to  them  in  love,  God  will  take 
care  to  repay  you  when  you  come  to  judgment. 
We  shall  not  only  glorify  God  by  a  submission 
to  His  will  when  He  is  putting  us  in  the  fire, 
but  in  doing  any  good,  when  we  lay  all  the 
glory  at  the  foot  of  Jesus  ;  which  God  grant 
for  Christ's  sake.     Amen. 


VI 


JACOB  S  LADDER  :  A  FAREWELL  SERMON 

'  And  he  dreamed,  and  behold  a  ladder  set  up  on  the  earth, 
and  the  top  of  it  reached  to  heaven  :  and  behold  the  angels  of 
God  ascending  and  descending  on  it.  And,  behold,  the  Lord 
stood  above  it,  and  said,  I  am  the  Lord  God  of  Abraham  thy 
father,  and  the  God  of  Isaac  :  the  land  whereon  thou  liest,  to 
thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed  ;  and  thy  seed  shall  be  as 
the  dust  of  the  earth,  and  thou  shalt  spread  abroad  to  the 
west,  and  to  the  east,  and  to  the  north,  and  to  the  south  :  and  in 
thee  and  in  thy  seed  shall  all  the  families  of  the  earth  be 
blessed.  And,  behold,  I  am  with  thee,  and  will  keep  thee  in 
all  places  whither  thou  goest,  and  will  bring  thee  again  into 
this  land ;  for  I  will  not  leave  thee,  until  I  have  done  that 
which  I  have  spoken  to  thee  of^' — Genesis  xxviii.  12-15. 

The  wise  man  observes,  that  '  in  the  multitude 
of  dreams  there  are  many  vanities,'  being  often 
the  effects  of  a  peculiar  disorder  of  body,  or 
owing  to  some  disturbance  of  the  mind.  They 
whose  nervous  system  has  been  long  relaxed, 
who  have  had  severe  domestic  trials,  or  have 
been  greatly  affected  by  extraordinary  occur- 
rences, know  this  to  be  true  by  their  own 
experience.      But  however  this  may  be,  there 

have  been,  and   possibly  may  be  still,  dreams 
142 


JACOB'S  LADDER  143 

that  have  no  manner  of  dependence  on  the 
indisposition  of  the  body,  or  other  natural 
cause,  but  seem  to  bring  a  divine  sanction 
with  them,  and  make  peculiar  impressions  on 
the  party,  though  this  was  more  frequent 
before  the  canon  of  Scripture  was  closed 
than  now. 

God  spake  to  His  people  in  a  dream,  in 
a  vision  of  the  night ;  witness  the  subject  of 
our  present  meditation,  a  dream  of  the  patriarch 
Jacob,  when  going  forth  as  a  poor  pilgrim 
with  a  staff  in  his  hand,  from  his  father's 
house,  deprived  of  his  mother's  company  and 
instruction,  persecuted  by  an  elder  brother, 
without  attendants  or  necessaries,  only  leaning 
on  an  invisible  Power.  I  need  not  inform  you 
in  how  extraordinary  a  way  he  got  the  blessing, 
which  provoked  his  brother  to  such  a  degree, 
as  determined  him  to  be  the  death  of  Jacob,  as 
soon  as  ever  his  aged  father  had  dropped.  To 
what  a  height  did  this  wicked  man's  envy  rise 
when  he  said,  '  The  days  of  mourning  for  my 
father  will  soon  come.'  And  what  then  ? 
'  Why,  though  I  have  some  compassion  for 
the  old  man,  and  therefore  will  not  lay  violent 


144      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

hands  upon  my  brother  while  my  father  is 
alive,  yet  I  am  resolved  to  kill  him  before  my 
father  is  cold  in  his  grave.'  This  is  the  very 
spirit  of  Cain,  who  talked  to  his  brother,  and 
then  slew  him.  This  coming  to  the  ears  of 
his  mother,  she  tells  the  good  old  patriarch  her 
husband,  who,  loving  peace  and  quietness,  takes 
the  good  advice  of  the  weaker  vessel,  and 
orders  Jacob  to  go  to  his  mother's  brother, 
Laban,  and  stay  a  little  while  out  of  Esau's 
sight  (perhaps  out  of  sight,  out  of  mind),  and 
by  and  by  probably,  said  he,  thou  mayest 
come  to  thy  father  and  mother  again  in  peace 
and  safety.  Jacob,  though  sure  of  the  blessing 
in  the  end,  by  his  father's  confirmation  of  it, 
yet  prudently  makes  use  of  proper  means  ; 
therefore  he  obeyed  his  parents  :  and  woe,  woe 
be  to  those  who  think  a  parent's  blessing  not 
worth  their  asking  for  !  Having  had  his 
mother's  blessing,  as  well  as  his  father's, 
without  saying,  '  I  will  try  it  out  with  my 
brother,  I  will  let  him  know  that  I  am  not 
afraid  of  him,'  he  views  it  as  the  call  of  God, 
and,  like  an  honest,  simple  pilgrim,  went  out 
from  Beersheba  towards   Haran.      Was  it  not 


JACOB'S  LADDER  145 

a  little  unkind  in  his  parents  not  to  furnish 
him  with  some  necessaries  and  conveniences  ? 
When  the  servant  was  sent  to  fetch  a  wife  for 
Isaac,  he  had  a  great  deal  of  attendance  ;  why 
should  not  Jacob  have  it  now  ?  His  father 
might  have  sent  him  away  with  great  parade  ; 
but  I  am  apt  to  believe  this  did  not  suit 
Jacob's  real  pilgrim  spirit.  He  was  a  plain 
man,  and  dwelt  in  tents,  when,  perhaps,  he 
might  have  dwelt  under  cedar  roofs  ;  he  chose 
a  pilgrim's  life,  and  prudence  directed  him  to  go 
thus  in  a  private  manner,  to  prevent  increasing 
Esau's  envy,  and  giving  the  fatal  blow. 

Methinks  I  see  the  young  pilgrim  weeping 
when  he  took  his  leave  of  his  father  and 
mother.  He  went  on  foot,  and  they  that  are 
acquainted  with  the  geography  of  the  place, 
say  that  the  first  day  of  his  journey  he  walked 
not  less  than  forty  English  miles.  What 
exercise  must  he  have  had  all  that  way !  No 
wonder,  therefore,  that  by  the  time  the  sun 
was  going  down,  poor  Jacob  felt  himself  very 
weary,  for  we  are  told,  ver.  11,'  that  he  lighted 
upon  a  certain  place,  and  tarried  there  all  night, 
because  the  sun  was  set.'    There  is  a  particular 


146      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

emphasis  to  be  put  upon  this  term,  '  a  certain 
place ' ;  he  saw  the  sun  going  down,  he  was  a 
stranger  in  a  strange  land. 

You  that  are  born  in  England  can  have  very 
little  idea  of  it,  but  persons  that  travel  in  the 
American  woods  can  form  a  more  proper  idea, 
for  you  may  there  travel  a  hundred  and  a 
thousand  miles,  and  go  through  one  continued 
tract  of  tall  green  trees,  like  the  tall  cedars  of 
Lebanon.  And  the  gentlemen  of  America, 
from  one  end  to  the  other,  are  of  such  an 
hospitable  temper,  as  I  have  not  only  been 
told,  but  have  found  among  them  upwards  of 
thirty  years,  that  they  would  not  let  public 
houses  be  licensed,  that  they  may  have  an 
opportunity  of  entertaining  English  friends. 
May  God,  of  His  infinite  mercy,  grant  this 
union  may  never  be  dissolved  ! 

Well,  Jacob  got  to  a  certain  place,  and 
perhaps  he  saw  a  good  tree  that  would  serve 
him  for  a  canopy.  However,  this  we  are  told, 
he  tarried  there  all  night  because  the  sun  was 
set,  and  he  took  of  the  stones  of  that  place, 
and  put  them  for  his  pillow,  and  laid  down  in 
that  place  to  sleep  ;  hard  lodgings  for  him  who 


JACOB'S  LADDER  147 

was  used  to  lie  otherwise  at  home !  I  do  not 
hear  him  say,  '  I  wish  I  were  got  back  to  my 
mother  again,  I  wish  I  had  not  set  out '  ;  but 
upon  the  hard  ground  and  hard  pillow  he  lies 
down.  I  believe  never  poor  man  slept  sweeter 
in  his  life,  for  it  is  certainly  sweet  sleep  when 
God  is  near  us ;  he  did  not  know  but  his 
brother  might  follow  and  kill  him  while  he 
was  asleep,  or  that  the  wild  beasts  might 
devour  him.  In  America,  when  they  sleep  in 
the  woods — and  I  expect  to  have  some  such 
sleeping  times  in  them  before  a  twelvemonth 
is  over — we  are  obliged  to  make  a  fire  to 
keep  the  beasts  from  us.  I  have  often  said 
then,  and  I  hope  I  shall  never  forget  it,  when 
I  rise  in  the  morning,  this  fire  in  the  woods, 
that  keeps  the  wild  beasts  from  hurting  us, 
is  like  the  fire  of  God's  love,  that  keeps  the 
devil  from  hurting  us.  Thus  weary  and 
solitary  he  falls  asleep,  and  sweetly  dreams 
— '  and  behold.'  I  do  not  remember  many 
passages  of  Scripture  where  the  word  '  behold ' 
is  repeated  so  many  times  in  so  short  a  space 
as  in  the  passage  before  us.  Doubtless,  the 
Lord  would   have   us   particularly  take   notice 


148      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

of  it,  even  us  upon  whom  the  ends  of  the 
world  are  come.  '  Behold,  a  ladder  set  upon 
the  earth,  and  the  top  of  it  reached  to  heaven  ; 
and  behold  the  angels  of  God  ascending 
and  descending  on  it.  And  behold  the 
Lord  stood  above  it '  ;  so  here  are  three 
'  beholds '  in  a  very  few  lines.  Was  there 
anything  very  extraordinary  in  that  ?  Perhaps 
the  deists  would  say,  *  Your  patriarch  v^as 
tired,  and  dreamed  among  other  things  of  a 
ladder.'  Yes,  he  did  ;  but  this  dream  was  of 
God  ;  and  how  kind  was  He  to  meet  him 
at  the  end  of  the  first  day's  journey,  to 
strengthen  and  animate  him  to  go  forward 
in  this  lonesome  pilgrimage ! 

This  ladder  is  reckoned  by  some  to  denote 
the  providence  of  God.  It  was  let  down  as 
it  were  from  heaven,  particularly  at  this  time, 
to  poor  Jacob,  that  he  might  know  that, 
however  he  was  become  a  pilgrim,  and  left 
his  all,  all  for  God's  glory,  that  God  would 
take  care  for  his  comfort,  and  give  His  angels 
charge  over  him,  to  keep  him  in  all  his  ways, 
which  was  denoted  by  the  angels  ascending 
and     descending     upon     the    ladder.       Some 


JACOB'S  LADDER  149 

think  that  particular  saints  and  countries 
have  particular  guardian  angels,  and  therefore 
that  the  angels  that  ascended  were  those 
that  had  the  particular  charge  of  that  place, 
so  far  as  Jacob  had  come ;  that  the  angels 
that  descended  were  another  set  of  angels, 
sent  down  from  heaven  to  guard  him  in  his 
future  journey ;  perhaps  this  is  more  a  fancy 
than  the  Word  of  God.  However,  I  very  much 
like  the  observation  of  good  Mr  Burkitt,^ 
'  Why  should  we  dispute  whether  every 
individual  believer  has  got  a  particular  angel, 
when  there  is  not  one  believer  but  has  got 
guards  of  angels  to  attend  him  ? '  which  are 
a  great  deal  better  than  a  great  many  servants, 
that  prove  our  plagues,  and,  instead  of  waiting 
upon  us,  make  us  wait  upon  them. 

But,  my  dear  hearers,  I  do  not  know  one 
spiritual  commentator  but  agrees  that  this 
ladder  was  a  type  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ; 
and  that  as  Jacob  was  now  banished  from 
his    father's   house,   and    while    sleeping    upon 

1  The  Rev.  William  Burkitt  (1650- 1703),  vf\\ost  Expository 
Notes,  with  Practical  Observations  on  the  New  Testament, 
published  in  1724,  were  frequently  reprinted  during  Whitefield's 
life. 


ISO      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

a  hard,  cold  stone,  God  was  pleased  not  only 
to  give  him  an  assurance  that  He  would  be 
with  him  in  the  way,  but  gave  him  a  blessed 
sight  of  Jesus  Christ,  in  whom  Jacob  believed. 

A  ladder,  you  know,  is  something  by  which 
we  climb  from  one  place  to  another ;  hence, 
in  condescension  to  our  weak  capacities,  God 
ordered  a  ladder  to  be  let  down,  to  show  us 
that  Christ  is  the  way  to  heaven  ;  '  I  am  the 
way,  the  truth,  and  the  life  ;  I  am  the  door,' 
says  He ;  '  neither  is  there  salvation  in  any 
other,  for  there  is  no  other  name  given  under 
heaven  whereby  we  must  be  saved.' 

The  deists,  who  own  a  God,  but  deny  His 
Son,  dare  go  to  God  out  of  Christ ;  but 
Jacob  is  here  taught  better  ;  how  soon  does 
God  reveal  the  Gospel  unto  him  !  Here  is 
a  ladder,  by  which  God  preaches  to  us.  If 
you  have  a  mind  to  climb  from  earth  to 
heaven,  you  must  get  up  by  the  Son  of  God  ; 
no  one  ever  pointed  out  a  proper  way  to 
heaven  for  us  but  Himself.  When  Adam 
and  Eve  fell  from  God,  a  flaming  sword 
turned  every  way  to  keep  them  from  the 
tree   of  life ;    but  Jesus    alone    is   a   new  and 


JACOB'S  LADDER  151 

living  way,  not  only  to  the  holy  of  holies 
below,  but  into  the  immediate  presence  of 
God  ;  and  that  we  might  know  that  He  was 
a  proper  Saviour,  the  top  of  it  reached  to 
heaven.  If  it  had  stopped  short,  Jacob  might 
have  said,  '  Ah  !  the  ladder  is  within  a  little 
way  of  heaven,  but  does  not  quite  reach  it ; 
if  I  climb  to  the  top,  I  shall  not  get  there, 
after  all.'  But  the  top  reached  to  heaven, 
to  point  out  the  divinity  and  exaltation  of 
the  Son  of  God ;  such  a  Saviour  became  us, 
who  was  God,  God  over  all,  blessed  for 
evermore.  And  therefore  the  Arian  scheme 
is  most  uncomfortable  and  destructive  ;  to 
talk  of  Christ  as  a  Saviour  that  is  not  God, 
is  no  Christ  at  all.  I  would  turn  deist 
to-morrow,  if  I  did  not  know  that  Christ 
was  God  :  '  but  cursed  is  the  man  that  builds 
his  faith  upon  an  arm  of  flesh.'  If  Christ 
be  God,  the  Arians  and  Socinians,  by  their 
own  principles,  are  undone  for  ever ;  but  Jesus 
Christ  is  very  God  and  very  man,  begotten 
(not  made)  of  the  Father  :  God,  of  His 
infinite  mercy,  write  His  divinity  deep  in  our 
hearts  ! 


152      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

The  bottom  of  the  ladder  reached  to  the 
earth ;  this  points  out  to  us  the  humiliation 
of  the  blessed  Lord.  For  us  men  He  came 
down  from  heaven ;  we  pray  to,  and  for,  a 
descending  God.  All  the  sufferings  which 
our  Lord  voluntarily  exposed  Himself  to 
were  that  He  might  become  a  ladder  for 
you  and  me  to  climb  up  to  heaven  by. 
'  Come  down  from  the  cross,'  say  they,  '  and 
we  will  believe  Thee ' ;  if  He  had,  what  would 
have  become  of  us  ?  Did  they  believe  on 
Him  when  He  was  dead,  buried,  and  risen 
again  ?  No.  Some  people  say,  '  If  Christ 
were  here,  oh  dear,  we  should  love  Him ' : 
just  as  much  as  they  did  when  they  turned 
Him  out  of  doors,  when  He  came  down 
before.  If  He  had  come  down  from  the 
cross,  they  would  have  hung  Him  up  again. 
Oh,  that  you  and  I  might  make  His  cross 
a  step  to  glory  ! 

As  the  top  of  the  ladder  pointed  out  His 
exaltation,  the  bottom  His  humiliation,  the 
two  sides  of  the  ladder  being  joined  together, 
point  out  the  union  of  the  Deity  and  manhood 
in    the    person   of   Christ ;    and    that    as   this 


JACOB'S   LADDER  153 

ladder  had  steps  to  it,  so,  blessed  be  God, 
Jesus  Christ  has  found  out  a  way  whereby 
we  may  go,  step  after  step,  to  glory.  The 
first  step  is  the  righteousness  of  Christ,  the 
active  and  passive  obedience  of  the  Redeemer  ; 
no  setting  one  foot  upon  this  ladder  without 
coming  out  of  ourselves,  and  relying  wholly 
upon  a  better  righteousness  than  our  own. 
Again,  all  the  other  steps  are  the  graces  of 
the  blessed  Spirit  ;  therefore,  you  need  not 
be  afraid  of  our  destroying  inward  holiness 
by  preaching  the  doctrine  of  the  imputation  of 
Christ's  righteousness  ;  that  one  is  the  founda- 
tion, the  other  the  superstructure  ;  to  talk  of 
my  having  the  righteousness  of  Christ  imputed 
to  my  soul,  without  my  having  the  holiness  of 
Christ  imparted  to  it,  and  bringing  forth  the 
fruits  of  the  Spirit  as  an  evidence  of  it,  is  only 
deceiving  ourselves.  I  would  never  preach  upon 
imputed  righteousness,  without  speaking  of  in- 
ward holiness,  for  if  you  do  not  take  a  great  deal 
of  care,  you  will  unawares,  under  a  pretence  of 
exalting  Christ,  run  into  Antinomianism,  depths 
that  Calvin  never  went  into  ;  probably  you  will 
imbitter  other  spirits  that  do   not  agree  with 


154      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

you,  and  at  the  same  time  hurt  the  fruits  of 
the  Spirit.  May  God  give  you  clear  heads, 
and  at  the  same  time  warm  hearts. 

On  the  ladder,  Jacob  saw  the  angels  of  God 
ascending  and  descending.  What  is  that  for? 
To  show  that  they  are  ministering  spirits,  sent 
forth  to  minister  to  them  that  shall  be  heirs  of 
salvation ;  therefore  we  find  them  attending 
upon  Christ.  We  do  not  hear  much  of  them 
after  the  canon  of  Scripture  was  closed ;  but 
as  soon  as  ever  Christ  was  born,  the  angels 
sang.  Till  then  we  never  hear  of  their  singing 
below,  as  far  as  I  can  judge,  since  the  creation. 
Then  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy.  When 
Eve  reached  out  her  hand  to  pluck  the  fatal 
apple,  and  gave  to  Adam,  earth  groaned,  and 
the  angels  hung,  as  it  were,  their  harps  upon 
the  willows  ;  but  when  Christ,  the  second 
Adam,  was  born,  the  angels  sang  at  midnight, 
'  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest'  I  pray  to  God 
we  may  all  die  singing  that  anthem,  and  sing 
it  to  all  eternity. 

After  His  temptation,  they  came  and  minis- 
tered to  Him,  as  some  think,  food  for  His  body, 
and  wished  Him  joy  and  comfort  in  His  soul  : 


JACOB'S  LADDER  155 

and   in    His   agonies   in   the   garden    an   angel 
strengthened    Him.       After    His    resurrection, 
two   appeared    again,    one    at    the    head    and 
another  at  the  foot  of    His   sepulchre,   to   let 
those  that  looked  into  the  sepulchre  know  that 
they  would  not  only  wait  upon  the  head,  but 
the  foot  ;  and  the  angels  are  glad  to  wait  upon 
the    meanest  of  the  children  of  God.     When 
our  Lord  departed,  a  cloud  received   Him  out 
of  their  sight,  which  probably  was  a  cloud  of 
angels.      Having  led  His  disciples  out  of  the 
city,  He  blessed  them,  and  then  away  He  went 
to   heaven  ;  may  that  blessing  rest  upon  you 
and  your  children ! 

This  intimates  that  God  makes  use  of  angels 
to  attend  His  people,  especially  when  they  are 
departing  into  eternity.  Perhaps,  part  of  our 
entertainment  in  heaven  will  be,  to  hear  the 
angels  declare  how  many  millions  of  times  they 
have  assisted  and  helped  us.  Our  Lord  says  : 
angels  do  there  behold  the  face  of  the  Father 
of  His  little  ones  ;  and  therefore  I  love  to  talk 
to  the  lambs  of  the  flock ;  and  why  should  I  not 
talk  to  them  whom  angels  think  it  their  honour 
to  guard  ?      And  if  it   were  not  for  this,   how 


156      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

would  any  children  escape  the  dangers  they 
are  exposed  to  in  their  tender  age?  It  is 
owing  to  the  particular  providence  of  God 
that  any  one  child  is  brought  to  manhood  ; 
therefore  I  cannot  help  admiring  that  part  of 
the  Litany,  in  which  we  pray,  that  God  would 
take  care  not  only  of  the  grown  people,  but  of 
children  also:  God  take  care  of  yours  both  in 
body  and  soul. 

But  what  gave  the  greatest  comfort  to  Jacob 
was  that  the  Lord  was  on  the  top  of  the 
ladder  ;  which  I  do  not  know  whether  it  would 
have  been  so,  if  Jacob  had  not  seen  God  there. 
It  comforts  me,  I  assure  you,  to  think,  that 
whenever  God  shall  call  for  me,  I  shall  be 
carried  by  angels  into  Abraham's  bosom.  And 
I  have  often  thought  that  whenever  that  time 
comes,  that  blessed,  long  longed-for  moment 
comes,  as  soon  as  ever  they  have  called  upon 
me,  my  first  question  will  be  to  them,  '  Where 
is  my  dear  Master  ?  Where  is  Jesus  ?  Where 
is  that  dear  Emanuel,  who  has  loved  me  with 
an  everlasting  love,  and  has  called  me  by  His 
grace,  and  has  sent  you  to  fetch  me  home  to 
see  His  face? ' 


JACOB'S  LADDER  157 

But  I  believe  you  and  I  shall  have  no  occa- 
sion to  ask  where  He  is,  for  He  will  come  to 
meet  us  ;  He  will  stand  at  the  top  of  His 
ladder,  to  take  His  pilgrims  in  ;  so  God  was  at 
the  top  of  the  ladder,  pray  mind  that.  He 
appears  not  sitting,  as  He  is  often  represented 
in  heaven,  but  standing  :  as  much  as  to  say, 
*  Here,  here,  Jacob,  thy  brother  wants  to  kill 
thee  ;  here  thou  art  come  out  without  a  servant, 
art  lying  upon  a  hard  bed,  but  here  I  am 
ready  in  order  to  preserve  thee  ;  I  stand  above, 
and  I  see  thy  weariness,  I  see  the  fatigue  and 
hardships  thou  hast  yet  to  undergo,  though 
thou  dost  not  see  it  thyself;  thou  hast  thrown 
thyself  upon  My  providence  and  protection,  and 
I  will  give  thee  the  word  of  a  God,  that  I  will 
stand  by  thee.'  '  The  Lord  stood  above ' ;  if 
He  had  said  nothing,  that  would  have  been 
enough  to  have  shown  His  readiness  to  help. 

But  God  speaks,  behold-,  well  might  this  be 
ushered  in  with  the  word  behold  \  a  ladder  set 
on  the  earth,  and  behold  the  angels  of  God 
ascending  and  descending  on  it ;  and,  above 
all,  behold  God  speaking  from  it !  What  doth 
He  say?  '  I  am  the  Lord  God  of  Abraham  thy 


158      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

father.  Oh !  happy  they  that  can  say,  '  The 
Lord  God  of  my  father ' ;  happy  you  that  have 
got  fathers  and  mothers  in  heaven. 

I  remember,  about  twenty-five  years  ago, 
as  I  was  travelling  from  Bristol,  I  met  with  a 
man  on  the  road,  and  being  desirous  to  know 
whether  he  was  serious  or  not,  I  began  to  put 
in  a  word  for  Christ  (and  God  forbid  I  should 
travel  with  anybody  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
without  speaking  of  Christ  to  them).  He  told 
me  what  a  wicked  creature  he  had  been  ;  '  But, 
sir,'  says  he,  '  in  the  midst  of  my  wickedness, 
people  used  to  tell  me,  you  have  got  a  good 
many  prayers  upon  the  file  for  you ;  your 
godly  father  and  mother  have  prayed  very 
often  for  you.'  And  it  was  the  pleasure  of 
God  he  was  wrought  upon,  and  brought  to 
Christ.  Lay  in  a  good  stock  for  your  children, 
get  a  good  many  prayers  in  for  them  ;  they 
may  be  answered  when  you  are  dead  and  gone. 

'  I  am  the  God  of  Abraham  thy  father,'  not 
thy  grandfather  ;  to  put  him  in  mind  what  an 
honour  God  would  put  upon  him,  to  make  him 
as  it  were  the  father  of  the  Church.  Though 
you  may  have  instructors,  says  Paul,  you  have 


JACOB'S  LADDER  159 

but  one  father  :  '  and  the  God  of  Isaac  :  the 
land  whereon  thou  liest,  to  thee  will  I  give  it, 
and  to  thy  seed.'  Amazing,  amazing !  you 
know  very  well,  when  persons  buy  or  come  to 
an  estate,  they  usually  take  possession  of  it  by 
some  ceremony,  such  as  receiving  or  taking  up 
a  piece  of  dirt,  or  twig,  in  their  hand,  as  a  sign 
of  their  title.  Now,  says  God,  '  Poor  Jacob, 
thou  dost  little  think  that  this  very  spot  of 
ground  that  thou  liest  on  to-night,  cold  and 
stiff,  I  intend  to  give  to  thee,  and  thy  posterity, 
for  an  inheritance.' 

Oh,  my  brethren,  give  all  to  God,  and  God 
will  give  all  to  you.  Who  would  have  thought 
of  this  ?  probably  Jacob  did  not.  It  is  as  if 
God  took  a  pleasure  in  seeing  His  dear  children 
lie  on  such  a  hard  ground.  If  he  had  been  on 
a  feather  bed,  he  might  not  have  had  such  a 
visit.  Thou  shalt  have  now  a  God  to  lean 
upon,  'to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed, 
which  shall  be  as  the  dust  of  the  earth,  and 
thou  shalt  spread  abroad  to  the  west,  and  to 
the  east,  and  to  the  north,  and  to  the  south  ; 
and  in  thee  and  in  thy  seed  shall  all  the 
families   of  the  earth   be  blessed.'     Thus  did 

M 


i6o      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

heaven  balance  the  loss  of  the  comforts  of  his 
father's  house,  by  the  discovery  of  his  and  his 
offspring's  prosperity,  by  an  interest  in  the 
promised  seed. 

My  particular  circumstances  call  me  to 
observe,  and  I  believe  God  has  done  it  on 
purpose  to  encourage  me,  that  faith,  resting  on 
the  promise,  is  easily  resigned  to  the  loss  of 
present  good  ;  whereas  worldly  hearts  consider 
prosperity  as  a  portion ;  they  do  not  care  if  the 
devil  take  them  hereafter,  so  they  have  it  now  ; 
and  that  makes  carnal  people  wonder  how  we 
can  give  up  things  in  this  world,  for  the  sake 
of  those  not  yet  born  ;  but  it  is  to  glorify  God, 
and  lay  a  foundation  for  others'  happiness. 
Here  God  gives  Jacob  to  know,  that  hereafter 
his  seed  should  spread  on  the  east,  west,  north, 
and  south,  his  branches  should  multiply,  and 
at  last  from  his  loins  should  Jesus  Christ  come  ; 
what  for ?  'In  whom  all  the  families  of  the 
earth  should  be  blessed  ' :  God  Almighty  grant 
we  may  be  blessed  in  Him  ! 

Then  if  Jacob  should  say  in  his  heart,  hast 
thou  no  promise  for  me  ?  here  is  another  behold 
comes  in  :  '  Behold,  I   am  with  thee,  and  will 


I 


JACOB'S  LADDER  i6i 

keep  thee  in  all  places  whither  thou  goest.' 
What  a  word  is  this  !  thou  hast  nobody  with 
thee,  nothing  but  a  staff  (he  could  not  carry 
much  upon  his  back,  like  a  poor  soldier  with  a 
knapsack  behind,  and  a  little  bread  in  his 
pocket).  Well,  saith  God,  'I  do  not  despise  thee 
because  thou  art  destitute,  but  I  love  thee  the 
better  for  it ;  thy  brother  Esau  longs  to  kill 
thee,  but  if  Esau  stabs  thee,  he  shall  stab  thy 
God  first ;  I  will  not  only  be  with  thee  now, 
but  I  will  watch  every  step  thou  takest,  I  will 
be  with  thee  in  all  places  whither  thou  goest.' 
As  much  as  to  say,  '  Jacob,  thou  art  a  pilgrim, 
thy  life  is  to  be  a  moving  life,  I  do  not  intend 
thou  shall  settle  and  keep  in  one  place  ;  thy 
life  is  to  be  a  life  of  changes,  thou  art  to  move 
from  place  to  place,  but  I  will  be  with  thee 
in  all  places  whither  thou  goest,  and  thereby 
it  shall  be  known  that  I  am  Jacob's  God,  and 
also  by  My  bringing  thee  again  into  this 
land.'  He  not  only  assures  him  of  a  success- 
ful journey,  whither  he  was  now  going,  but 
promises  to  bring  him  back  once  more  to 
see  his  dear  father  and  mother,  and  relations, 
again  :   *  I  will  bring  thee  back  to  this  land  ' ; 


1 62      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

and  to  confirm  his  faith  and  hope,  the  great  God 
adds,  '  I  will  not  leave  thee  till  I  have  done 
that  I  have  spoken  to  thee  of  ;  that  is,  all  the 
good  He  had  just  now  promised.  Some  people 
promise,  but  they  cannot  do  it  to-day,  and 
they  will  not  do  it  to-morrow.  I  have  known 
the  world,  and  have  rung  the  changes  of  it 
ever  since  I  have  been  here  ;  but,  blessed  be 
God,  an  unchangeable  Christ  having  loved  His 
own,  He  loved  them  to  the  end ;  '  I  will  not 
leave  you  till  I  have  performed  all  things  I 
have  promised  you ' :  may  this  promise  come 
upon  you  and  your  children,  and  all  that  God 
shall  call. 

Thus  spake  the  great  Jehovah  to  poor 
Jacob,  just  setting  out  to  a  strange  land, 
knowing  not  whither  he  went.  But  now  God 
speaks  not  only  to  Jacob,  but  He  speaks  to 
you  ;  and,  blessed  be  the  living  God,  He 
speaks  to  me  also,  less  than  the  least  of  all ; 
and  as  my  design  is  (though  I  cannot  tell  but 
this  may  be  the  last  opportunity)  to  speak 
something  to  you  about  my  departure ;  yet, 
brethren,  my  grand  design  in  preaching  to  you 
is,  to   recommend   the   Lord   Jesus    Christ    to 


JACOB'S  LADDER  163 

your  souls ;  and  before  I  go,  to  make  a 
particular  personal  application.  Give  me 
leave,  therefore,  to  ask  you,  it  may  be  the  last 
time  I  may  ask  many  of  you,  Whether  you 
have  ever  set  your  foot  upon  this  blessed 
ladder,  the  Son  of  God  ?  I  ask  you  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  the  name  of 
the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  did  you 
ever  set  your  foot,  I  say,  upon  this  ladder? 
that  is,  did  you  ever  yet  believe  on  Jesus 
Christ,  and  come  to  Him  as  poor  lost  sinners, 
relying  upon  no  other  righteousness  than  that 
of  the  Son  of  God  ? 

Perhaps,  if  you  were  to  speak,  some  of  you 
would  say,  'Away  with  your  ladder ' ;  and  what 
will  you  do  then  ?  Why,  say  you,  *  I  will 
climb  to  heaven  without  it.'  What  ladder  will 
you  climb  upon  ?  '  Oh,  I  think  to  go  to  heaven 
because  I  have  been  baptised.'  That  ladder 
will  break  under  you  ;  what,  a  ladder  made  of 
water,  what  are  you  dreaming  of?  No  :  'Oh,  I 
think  I  shall  go  to  heaven,  because  I  have  done 
nobody  any  harm.'  What,  a  ladder  made  of 
negative  goodness  !  No  :  '  I  think  to  go,'  you 
will  say,  '  by  good   works '  :  a  ladder  made  of 


1 64      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

good  works,  that  has  not  Christ  for  its  bottom, 
what  is  that?  'I  think,'  say  you,  'to  go  to  heaven 
by  my  prayers  and  fastings.'  All  these  are  good 
in  their  place  ;  but,  my  brethren,  do  not  think 
to  climb  to  heaven  by  these  ropes  of  sand.  If 
you  never  before  set  your  foot  on  Christ,  this 
blessed  ladder,  God  grant  this  may  be  the 
happy  time. 

I  have  been  praying  before  most  of  you 
were  up,  I  believe,  that  God  would  give  me  a 
parting  blessing.  I  remember,  soon  after  I 
left  England  last,  that  a  dear  Christian  friend 
told  me  that  there  was  one  woman,  who  came 
only  out  of  curiosity,  that  dated  her  conversion 
from  hearing  my  last  sermon.  And,  I  bless 
God,  I  never  once  left  England,  but  some  poor 
soul  has  dated  their  conversion  from  my  last 
sermon.  When  I  put  on  my  surplice,  to  come 
out  to  read  the  second  service,  I  thought  it  was 
just  like  a  person's  being  decently  dressed  to  go 
out  to  be  executed.  I  would  rather,  was  it  the 
will  of  God  it  should  be  so,  than  to  feel  what  I 
do  in  parting  from  you,  that  death  would  put 
an  end  to  all  ;  but  I  am  to  be  executed  again 
and  again,  and  nothing  will  support  me  under 


JACOB'S  LADDER  165 

the  torture,  but  the  consideration  of  God 
blessing  me  to  some  poor  souls.  Do  pray  for 
me,  ye  children  of  God,  that  God  would  give 
us  a  parting  blessing.  God  help  you,  young 
people,  to  put  your  foot  on  this  ladder  ;  do 
not  climb  wrong.  The  devil  has  got  a  ladder, 
but  it  reaches  down  to  hell  ;  all  the  devil's 
children  go  down,  not  up  :  the  bottom  of  the 
devil's  ladder  reaches  to  the  depths  of  the 
damned,  the  top  of  it  reaches  to  the  earth  ; 
and  when  death  comes,  then  up  comes  the 
devil's  ladder,  to  let  you  down.  For  God's 
sake,  come  away  from  the  devil's  ladder ; 
climb,  climb,  dear  young  men.  Oh,  it  delighted 
me  on  Friday  night  at  the  Tabernacle,  when 
we  had  a  melting,  parting  sacrament ;  and  it 
delighted  me  this  morning  to  see  so  many 
young  men  at  the  table ;  God  add  to  the 
blessed  number !  Young  women,  put  your 
feet  upon  this  ladder  ;  God  lets  one  ladder 
down  from  heaven,  and  the  devil  brings  another 
up  from  hell.  'Oh,'  say  you,  '  I  would  climb  up 
God's  ladder,  I  think  it  is  right,  but  I  shall  be 
laughed  at ' :  do  you  think  to  go  to  heaven 
without  being  laughed  at?      The  Lord    Jesus 


1 66      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

Christ  help  you  to  climb  to  heaven.  Come, 
climb  till  you  get  out  of  the  hearing  of  their 
laughter.  Oh,  trust  not  to  your  own  righteous- 
ness, your  vows,  and  good  resolutions. 

Some  of  you,  blessed  be  God,  have  climbed 
up  this  ladder,  at  least  are  climbing.  Well,  I 
wish  you  joy  ;  God  be  praised  for  setting  your 
feet  on  this  ladder  ;  God  be  praised  for  letting 
down  this  ladder.  I  have  only  one  word  to 
say  to  you  :  for  Jesus  Christ's  sake,  and  your 
own  too,  climb  a  little  faster  ;  take  care  the 
world  does  not  get  hold  of  your  heels.  It  is 
a  shame  the  children  of  God  do  not  climb 
faster ;  you  may  talk  what  you  please,  but 
God's  people's  lukewarmness  is  more  provoking 
to  Him  than  all  the  sins  of  the  nation.  We 
cry  out  against  the  sins  of  the  land,  would  to 
God  we  did  cry  out  more  of  the  sins  of  the 
saints  ;  '  I  will  spew  you  out  of  my  mouth, 
because  you  are  lukewarm,'  says  Christ.  If 
any  of  you  say  you  cannot  climb  because 
you  are  lame-footed,  look  to  Jesus  Christ,  my 
dear  friends,  and  your  affliction  shall  make  you 
climb.  And  if  any  of  you  are  coming  down 
the  ladder  again,  the   Lord  Jesus  Christ  bless 


JACOB'S  LADDER  167 

the  foolishness  of  preaching  to  help  you  up 
again.  'Oh/  say  you,  'I  am  giddy,  I  shall  fall'; 
here,  I  will  give  you  a  rope,  be  sure  lay  hold 
of  it ;  just  as  the  sailors  do  when  you  go 
aboard  a  ship,  they  let  down  a  rope,  so  God 
lets  down  a  promise.  Climb,  climb,  then,  till 
you  have  got  higher,  into  a  better  climate,  and 
God  shall  put  His  hand  out  by  and  by,  when 
you  get  to  the  top  of  the  ladder,  to  receive 
you  to  Himself  Blessed  be  the  living  God,  I 
hope  and  believe  I  shall  meet  many  of  you  by 
and  by. 

And  now,  my  brethren,  it  is  time  for  me  to 
preach  my  own  funeral  sermon  ;  and  I  would 
humbly  hope  that,  as  a  poor  sinner,  I  may  put 
in  my  claim  for  what  God  promised  Jacob  ; 
and  I  do  put  it  in,  with  full  assurance  of  faith 
that  God  will  be  with  me.  I  am  now  going 
for  the  thirteenth  time  to  cross  the  Atlantic. 
When  I  came  from  America  last,  I  took  my 
leave  of  all  the  Continent,  from  the  one  end  of 
the  provinces  to  the  other,  except  some  places 
which  we  had  not  then  taken.  I  took  my 
leave  for  life,  without  the  least  design  of 
returning  there  again,  my  health  was  so  bad  ; 


i68      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

and  the  prospect  of  getting  the  Orphan-house 
into  other  hands  made  me  say,  when  I  first 
came  over,  '  I  have  no  other  river  to  go  over 
than  the  river  Jordan.' 

I  thought  then  of  retiring,  for  I  did  not 
choose  to  appear  when  my  nerves  were  so 
relaxed,  that  I  could  not  serve  God  as  I  could 
wish  to  do  ;  but  as  it  hath  pleased  God  to 
restore  my  health  much,  and  has  so  ordered  it 
by  His  providence,  that  I  intend  to  give  up  the 
Orphan-house,  and  all  the  land  adjoining,  for 
a  public  college,  I  wished  to  have  had  a  public 
sanction,  but  his  grace  the  late  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury  put  a  stop  to  it.  They  would 
give  me  a  charter,  which  was  all  I  desired, 
but  they  insisted  upon,  at  least  his  grace  and 
another  did,  that  I  should  confine  it  totally  to 
the  Church  of  England,  and  that  no  extempore 
prayer  should  be  used  in  a  public  way  in  that 
house,  though  Dissenters,  and  all  sorts  of 
people,  had  contributed  to  it.  I  would 
sooner  cut  my  head  off  than  betray  my  trust, 
by  confining  it  to  a  narrow  bottom  ;  I  always 
meant  it  should  be  kept  upon  a  broad  bottom, 
for    people   of   all    denominations,    that    their 


JACOB'S  LADDER  169 

children  might  be  brought  up  in  the  fear  of 
God. 

By  this  means  the  Orphan-house  reverted 
into  my  hands ;  I  have  once  more,  as  my 
health  was  restored,  determined  to  pursue  the 
plan  I  had  fixed  on ;  and,  through  the  tender 
mercies  of  God,  Georgia  (which  about  thirty- 
two  years  ago  was  a  desolate  place,  and  when 
the  land,  as  it  was  given  me  by  the  House  of 
Commons,  would  have  been  totally  deserted, 
and  the  colony  have  quite  ceased,  had  it  not 
been  for  the  money  I  have  laid  out  for  the 
Orphan-house,  to  keep  the  poor  people  to- 
gether), that  colony  is  rising  to  a  most 
amazing  height.  I  had  news  last  week  of 
the  great  prosperity  of  the  negroes ;  and  I 
hope  by  the  twenty-fifth  of  March,  which  is 
the  day,  the  anniversary  day,  I  laid  the  first 
brick,  in  the  year  1739,  I  say,  I  hope  by 
that  time  all  things  will  be  finished,  and  a 
blessed  provision  will  be  made  for  orphans  and 
poor  students  that  will  be  brought  up  there  ; 
it  will  be  a  blessed  source  of  provision  for  the 
children  of  God  in  another  part  of  the  world. 

This  is  a  grand  design   I   am  going  upon  ; 


lyo      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

this  is  my  visible  cause.  But  I  never  yet 
went  to  them,  but  God  has  been  pleased  to 
bless  my  ministration  among  them ;  and 
therefore,  after  I  have  finished  the  Orphan- 
house  affair,  I  intend  to  go  all  along  the 
Continent  by  land  (which  will  keep  me  all 
the  winter  and  spring),  and  when  I  come  to 
the  end  of  it,  which  will  be  Canada  and  New 
England,  then  I  hope  to  return  again  to  this 
place.  For,  let  people  say  what  they  will,  I 
have  not  so  much  as  a  single  thought  of 
settling  abroad,  on  this  side  eternity.  And 
I  am  going  in  no  public  capacity  ;  I  shall  set 
out  like  a  poor  pilgrim,  at  my  own  expense, 
trusting  upon  God  to  take  care  of  me,  and  to 
bear  my  charges  ;  and  I  call  God  to  witness, 
and  I  must  be  a  cursed  devil  and  hypocrite, 
to  stand  here  in  the  pulpit,  and  provoke  God 
to  strike  me  dead  for  lying,  I  never  had  the 
love  of  the  world,  nor  ever  felt  it  one  quarter 
of  an  hour  in  my  heart,  since  I  was  twenty 
years  old.  I  might  have  been  rich :  but 
though  the  Chapel  is  built,  and  I  have  a 
comfortable  room  to  lie  in,  I  assure  you  I 
built  it  at  my   own   expense,  it  cost  nobody 


JACOB'S  LADDER  171 

but  myself  anything.  I  have  a  watch  -  coat 
made  me,  and  in  that  I  shall  lie  every  night 
on  the  ground,  and  may  Jacob's  God  bless 
me  ! 

I  will  not  say  much  of  myself,  but  when  I 
have  been  preaching,  I  have  read  and  thought 
of  those  words  with  pleasure,  '  Surely  this  is 
the  house  of  God.  And  I  will  bring  thee 
again  to  this  land.'  Whether  that  will  be  my 
experience  or  not,  blessed  be  God,  I  have  a 
better  land  in  view.  And,  my  dear  brethren, 
I  do  not  look  upon  myself  at  home  till  I  land 
in  my  Father's  kingdom  ;  and  if  I  am  to  die 
in  the  way,  if  I  am  to  die  in  the  ship,  it  comforts 
me  that  I  know  I  am  as  clear  as  the  sun,  that 
I  go  by  the  will  of  God  :  and  though  people 
may  say,  '  Will  you  leave  the  world  !  Will  you 
leave  the  Chapel  ? '  Oh,  I  am  astonished  that 
we  cannot  leave  everything  for  Christ  ;  my 
greatest  trial  is,  to  part  with  those  who  are 
as  dear  to  me  as  my  own  soul  ;  and  however 
others  may  forget  me,  as  thousands  have,  and 
do  forget  me,  yet  I  cannot  forget  them. 

And  now  may  Jacob's  God  be  with  you  ; 
oh,  keep  close  to  God,  my  dear  London  friends  ; 


172      WHITEFIELD'S  SERMONS 

I  do  not  bid  you  keep  close  to  Chapel  ;  you 
have  done  so  always.  I  shall  endeavour  to 
keep  up  the  Word  of  God  among  you  in  my 
absence  :  I  shall  have  the  same  persons  that 
managed  for  me  when  I  was  out  last,  and  they 
sent  me  word  again  and  again,  by  letter,  that 
it  was  remarkable  that  the  Tottenham  Court 
people  were  always  present  when  ordinances 
were  there. 

You  see  I  went  upon  a  fair  bottom  ;  I  might 
have  had  a  thousand  a  year  out  of  this  place, 
if  I  had  chose  it  :  when  I  am  gone  to  heaven 
you  will  see  what  I  have  got  on  earth.^  I  do 
not  like  to  speak  now,  because  it  may  be 
thought  boasting  ;  but  I  am  sure  there  are 
numbers  of  people  here,  if  they  knew  what  I 
have,  would  love  me  as  much  as  they  now  hate 
me.  When  we  come  before  the  great  Judge 
of  quick  and  dead,  while  I  stand  before  Him, 
God  grant  you  may  not  part  with  me  then,  it 
will  be  a  dreadful  parting  then,  it  will  be  worse 

^  Whitefield  died  worth  about  ;^I400,  mainly  derived  from 
legacies.  He  left  ;!^I330  in  legacies  to  various  friends  and 
servants.  The  Orphan  -  house,  the  Tabernacle,  and  the 
Tottenham  Court  Road  Chapel  were  regarded  as  only  held 
in  trust  by  him.      (See  Tyerman,  ii.  608-9.) 


JACOB'S  LADDER  173 

then,  to  go  into  the  fire,  to  be  among  the  devil 
and  his  angels  ;  God  forbid  it  !  God  forbid  it ! 
God  forbid  it  !  Oh,  remember  that  my  last 
words  were,  come,  come  to  Christ  ;  the  Lord 
help  you  to  come  to  Christ  ;  come  to  Christ, 
come  to  Jacob's  God  ;  God  give  you  faith  like 
Jacob's  faith. 

You  that  have  been  kind  to  me,  that  have 
helped  me  when  1  was  sick,  some  of  whom  are 
here,  that  have  been  very  kind  to  me,  may 
God  reward  you,  my  friends,  and  God  forgive 
my  enemies  ;  God,  of  His  infinite  mercy,  bless 
you  all.  You  will  be  amply  provided  for, 
I  believe,  here.  May  God  spread  the  Gospel 
everywhere  ;  and  may  God  never  leave  you, 
nor  forsake  you.  Even  so.  Lord  Jesus.  Amen 
and  Amen. 


THE    END. 


TURNBULL   AND  SPEARS,   PRINTERS,  EDINBURGH. 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Libraries 


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